SAFF Championship 2023: India gear up for opener against Pakistan; start firm favourite to land title

The Indian football team will approach the SAFF Championship 2023 as a confident outfit and seek to continue to dominate the competition, buoyed by its recent victory in the Intercontinental Cup. India will face Pakistan in their opening encounter at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday, and the match is all set to be played as per schedule after the latter received their India visa on Monday night.

Pakistan, which is low in the pecking order, may not present a significant challenge to India, but the Blue Tigers will be eager to get their campaign started to a rollicking start and send a clear message to other contenders.

Eight-time champions India have been placed in Group A with Pakistan, Kuwait, and Nepal. The other competing teams are Lebanon, Maldives, Bhutan and Bangladesh, who have been drafted in Group B of the competition.

Also read: SAFF Championship 2023: Stage set for India vs Pakistan in Bengaluru; date, time, tickets and where to watch

Their desire to add another trophy to the cabinet will increase in light of their Intercontinental Cup success. India won the competition after defeating Lebanon 2-0 on Sunday at the Kalinga Stadium. Sunil Chhetri, India's captain and top scorer, managed to put his name on the score sheet, giving the Indians their first victory over Lebanon in 46 years.

The Indian team would be counting on Chhetri to do similarly in the SAFF Championship 2023. If one needs some more encouragement, Chhetri can aim to pass Malaysia's Mokhtar Dahari, who has 89 goals to his name, to become the second-highest scorer in Asian football. Chhetri has scored 87 goals for India in 137 games, and he needs three more goals in the SAFF tournament to reach an exceptional milestone.

Beyond those individual accomplishments, India will also want to protect its illustrious team legacy. They are the reigning champions after winning the competition in 2021, yet that victory was only one of their eight SAFF championships.

India would therefore be excited to add a ninth title to their collection in Bengaluru. India have bagged the coveted trophy in 1993, 1997, 1999, 2005, 2009, 2011, 2015, and 2021. Only Bangladesh (2003) and the Maldives (2008, 2018) have been able to steal the victory from India.

India will move up the ladder and acquire some important FIFA Ranking points with a win in the SAFF tournament. For India's opponents in the SAFF Championship, it won't sound too good because they are aware that a strong home team is a difficult mountain to climb.

Igor Stimac, the coach of India, was aware of the challenges the team would face as it prepared for the AFC Asian Cup. "I know we can do better. As a coach, I cannot show satisfaction. I am happy now but we are not going to stop working, will look to do better and push for more," Stimac had said after the Intercontinental Cup win.

India squad:

Goalkeepers: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Amrinder Singh, Phurba Lachenpa Tempa.
Defenders: Subhasish Bose, Pritam Kotal, Sandesh Jhingan, Anwar Ali, Akash Mishra, Mehtab Singh and Rahul Bheke.
Midfielders: Liston Colaco, Ashique Kuruniyan, Suresh Singh Wangjam, Rohit Kumar, Udanta Singh, Anirudh Thapa, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Nikhil Poojary, Jeakson Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad, Lalengmawia Ralte, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Rowllin Borges, Nandha Kumar.
Forwards: Sunil Chhetri, Rahim Ali, Ishan Pandita.

Wednesday's matches: Kuwait vs Nepal, 3.30 PM; India vs Pakistan, 7.30 PM