New Delhi: The wet surface at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium had the final say as defending champions India and Nepal played out a goalless draw in the Nehru Cup football tournament on Tuesday.
Needing a win to seal a place in the final for the third time in a row, India showed intent but could never find the much-needed goal against a side that fought bravely after coming off two reverses.
India, who play their last game against Cameroon on Friday, still have a chance to make the final, but will have to wait and see how tomorrow’s match between Maldives and Cameroon pan out.
While a win for Maldives will leave India with no option but to beat Cameroon, a positive result for the African nation will be more beneficial to the hosts.
India had a serious chance of breaking the deadlock towards the end, but it was due to goalkeeper Kiran Chemjong’s brilliant effort against Robin Singh’s power-packed volley that ensured Nepal shared the honours.
A minute before Robin’s attempt, Franics Fernandes released the ball for Jewel Raja, who dribbled past Sagar Thapa but the India’s right-footed attempt was palmed away by the keeper for a corner.
Life was made difficult by the continuous downpour of rain which left the surface wet. Not only were the players frustrated, the sizeable turnout too, went home disappointed.
India’s football coach Wim Koevermans admitted that they were overshadowed by Nepal, but he was still gung-ho about his side’s chances of making the final.
“I expected my team to be better in the first half. Nepal played better in the first half, probably because there was more pressure on us,” Koevermans said.
“We defended well… The boys were disappointed at the first half but in the second half they had two very big chances The Nepal goalkeeper did well to block them.” (PTI)