After Udanta Singh Kumam’s 80th-minute goal cancelled out Jameel Al Yahmadi’s 55th-minute opener, it was all down to the dreaded penalty shootout, as the 30 minutes of extra time did not yield any result. Oman defender Ali Al Busaidi was sent off in the 96th minute.

Lallianzuala Chhangte, Rahul Bheke, and Jithin MS scored for India in the penalties, while Anwar Ali’s spot-kick was saved and Udanta missed. Meanwhile, Thani Al Rushaidi, Muhsen Al Ghassani were the only two players to score their spot kicks for Oman. Harib Al Saadi and Ahmed Al Kaabi missed theirs, and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, in dramatic fashion, produced a save off the last kick off the game from Jameel Al Yahmadi.

It was one of those matches where pure statistics would not be able to paint the entire picture. While Oman enjoyed majority of possession, both sides shared nearly equal number of chances. India began on the front foot, launching counter attacks through Vikram Partap Singh and Lallianzuala Chhangte on the wings.

The Blue Tigers’ real chance came in the 16th minute, when a Muhammed Uvais long throw was headed on towards Anwar by Nikhil Prabhu. The defender’s powerful header was saved by Oman goalkeeper Ibrahim Al Mukhaini.

Oman, however, began to grow into the game, and Sandhu was soon called into the action in the 25th minute, when Issam Al Sabhi’s shot from outside the box was palmed away by India’s skipper keeper.

Minutes later, Nasser Al Rawahi was slipped through between the Indian defensive lines, and only had Sandhu to beat. However, his angular shot rolled wide of the goal.

India had a good chance to take the lead just before half-time, when Chhangte found Irfan Yadwad with a low cut-back, but the latter scuffed his shot, which went wide.

Oman started off on the front foot in the second half, and scored within 10 minutes of the restart, when Abdullah Fawaz flicked the ball from inside the box with the outside of his boot towards Al Yahmadi, who tapped it in at the far post.

An even contest ensued after the goal, as India looked for a way back into the match. Blue Tigers head coach Khalid Jamil, with a little over 10 minutes of regulation time left, introduced Udanta and Suresh Singh Wangjam into the fray, and the substitutions immediately made an impact.

Rahul Bheke’s 80th-minute long throw was flicked on towards the far post by the head of Danish Farooq, as Udanta rushed in to produce an instinctive header that bounced into the net. There was a relatively long wait after the goal, as the video assistant referee checked for infringements in the box, but the goal was finally allowed.

Udanta created another opportunity in injury time, playing substitute Manvir Singh (jr) through with an aerial poke, but it was dealt with by the Oman defence as the match went into extra time.

Al Busaidi was given his marching orders after the commencement of extra time, and India now began to gain control of the proceedings with the man advantage. However, chances were few and far between in the additional 30 minutes, and the two sides soon had to line up for the dreaded penalties.

India shot into a 2-0 lead in the shootout after Al Saadi and Al Kaabi missed, but Oman goalkeeper Al Mukhaini’s save off of Anwar’s spot-kick, and Udanta’s miss brought them back into the contest. Sandhu stepped in when it mattered the most, producing a diving save off Al Yahmadi’s effort, to win the CAFA Nations Cup 2025 bronze medal for India.

India: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (GK, C), Rahul Bheke, Anwar Ali, Nikhil Prabhu (Suresh Singh Wangjam 78’), Lallianzuala Chhangte, Vikram Partap Singh (Jithin MS 46’), Irfan Yadwad (Udanta Singh Kumar 78’), Mahesh Singh Naorem (Manvir Singh jr 64’), Hmingthanmawia Ralte, Muhammed Uvais (Roshan Singh Naorem 64’), Danish Farooq Bhat (Jeakson Singh Thounaojam 116’).

Credits: AIFF Media

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India have been placed in Group B, where, after facing the hosts, they will play IR Iran (September 1) and Afghanistan (September 4). Group A, meanwhile, consists of hosts Uzbekistan, Kyrgyz Republic, Turkmenistan, and Oman. The top teams from each group will play each other in the final, while the two second-placed teams will face off in the third-place match, both to be played on September 8.

India head coach Khalid Jamil sounded satisfied with his side’s 10-day preparatory camp in Bengaluru, preceding the tournament. He said, “We had a good preparation for the CAFA Nations Cup. Every player worked hard before coming here. It is a pleasure for us to participate in this tournament.”

India and Tajikistan have played each other five times in history, with the Central Asian country winning three. The Blue Tigers’ only win against Tajikistan came in the AFC Challenge Cup 2008 final, where India defeated the Persian Lions 4-1.

That result was 18 years ago, and Tajikistan (106th in the FIFA Rankings) are a different side now. Jamil is fully aware of the threats that the opponents pose to India (133rd in the FIFA Rankings), but is more intent on the Blue Tigers playing their own game.

“Yes, we know about them (Tajikistan). They are a strong side and have done well recently. But we must focus on our own game and be mentally prepared. It is important for us to play as a unit and keep improving every match. The process will take time. We want to focus on both the juniors and the seniors to build a strong unit for the future matches,” said Jamil, who also named three captains for the CAFA Nations Cup – Sandesh Jhingan, Rahul Bheke, and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.

The India head coach stressed the importance of spreading positivity in the team. “We must think fresh, we must think positive. Yes, this is an away game against a good team, but we have to prepare accordingly and think only of one thing – a positive result. All the players must take responsibility. I feel that we are ready to accept this challenge.

India goalkpeeper Hrithik Tiwari, at the pre-match press conference, said, “We have trained hard over the last few weeks, and our camp in Bengaluru gave us an intense 10 days to get ready for the CAFA Nations Cup. I am sure everyone is excited to play this tournament and ready to give their best.”

Credits: AIFF Media

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