India defends SAFF championship by defeating Kuwait

India successfully defended its championship title by emerging victorious over Kuwait in the final match, securing a penalty shootout score of 5-4.

To reach the finals, India overcame Lebanon in a tense penalty shootout. With this triumph, India clinched the championship title for an impressive 9th time, solidifying its dominant position in the tournament.

Kuwait and Lebanon were invited to participate in the championship, marking the first time that countries outside the South Asia region joined the competition.

This is the second instance in which India claimed the title through a penalty shootout. The first occurrence was in 2009 when India triumphed over the Maldives in a similar fashion.

India and Kuwait both showed sportsmanship in the final match that was played in front of 26,380 supporters at Sri Kanteerava Stadium, Bangalore.

Kuwait took the lead in the 14th minute by a ball passed over from Abdulla Al Bloushi and into the goal by Shabaib Al Haldy. India team’s Lallianzuala Chhangte sent a near miss which was deftly defended by Kuwait’s goalkeeper Abdulrahman Marzouq. In the half, India team’s defender Anwar Ali and Kuwait’s defender Hassan Alanazi were replaced due to injuries.

Chhangte scored the equaliser for the Indian team in the 38th minute. He slotted in a ball that was sent by Mahesh.

India’s defender Sandesh Jhingan played a pivotal role in the defence against Kuwait’s attacks. He was shown two yellow cards in the group stage which led to him missing the semi-finals.

In the last minutes of the regulation time, Kuwait came within inches of scoring the winning goal. The opportunity arose when Mohammad Abdhulla intercepted a throw-in and unleashed a powerful strike towards the Indian goal. However, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu made a remarkable save, denying Kuwait a certain goal.