Updated September 12th, 2019 at 13:26 IST

India vs Qatar Highlights: FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers

FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, India vs Qatar saw 'The Blue Tigers' going against the Asian Champions. The match ended up in a draw, with a score of 0-0.

Reported by: Aditi Sharma
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Fifa World Cup is a quadrennial international men’s association football championship contested by the national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The 2022 FIFA World Cup would be the 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup. FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 would commence on 21 November, and the finals would be held on 18 December. This the first time that an Arab country is hosting the world cup. After the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, this is the second time that the World Cup would be held entirely in Asia.

FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifiers; India vs Qatar Highlights

FIFA has 211 Associations. India and Qatar are the two of them. Qatar is the current Asian champions in the AFC. The team ranks 62nd in the world rankings whereas India ranks 103rd. The qualifiers for FIFA World Cup 2022 began recently. There are different teams according to the regions. The Asian region has 46 participating teams.

Sunil Chhetri out, India vs Qatar ends with a 0-0 draw 

After losing to Oman in the first qualifier, India went against the host on 10 September 2019. India vs Qatar match was held at Khalifa bin Hamad Stadium Doha, Qatar. The Indian captain, Sunil Chhetri was not playing for the second qualifier as he was ruled out due to high fever. He was the only player to score a goal against Oman in the earlier match. India last faced Qatar in 2007 and lost by the score of 6-0. Thus, winning against one of the strongest teams in their group was a challenging task. Coach Igor Stimac and the Indian team managed to shock the host with remarkable results in Doha. India vs Qatar match was settled for a goal-less stalemate between the two teams.

The match began at 20:53 (IST). The first half of the match went smooth for India. They didn't get many opportunities to goal, but they managed to bat away the ones made by the opponent team.

  • At 22:07 (IST) Tariq Salman takes a shot that hits Gurpreet’s palms but doesn’t give him much trouble.
  • At 22:10 (IST), Gurpreet is tested yet again by Hassan Al- Haydos when he tries to curl it past Gurpreet from an acute angle.
  • Till 22:16 (IST), The match is still goal-less. Both teams are struggling to get an upper-hand on the match.
  • At 22:22 (IST) India gets in trouble when Hassan-Al-Haydos conjures up another difficult long-range attempt that gets saved by Gurpreet who tips it over the bar.
  • At 22:25 (IST) The match was just started and Indian player Gurpreet gets a yellow card. He was penalized for timewasting.
  • At 22:34 (IST) There is a sigh of relief among the Indian defense as much of the match is being played in the middle third of the field. Qatar decreased their pace at the moment.

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  • At 22:48 (IST) Gurpreet with an incredible performance stands out. Abdelkarim Hassan targets a shot towards Gurpreet’s goal but he just bats it away. Qatar makes an attempt again, and this time, Almoez Ali focuses on the penalty area with an intent to goal with a low shot. Gurpreet saves it again!
  • At 22:52 (IST) India reaches in the second half with Qatar. The match till now was one-sided with Qatar having scores of opportunities. Gurpreet showed great performance in the field.
  • At 23:05 (IST) India needs to be more careful as Qatar gets the ball rolling.
  • At 23:11 (IST) India gets their first real chance of the night, as Sahal Abdul Samad plays through Udanta on the right-wing, who is off like a hare. He sprints all the way to the Qatar penalty area, but his cross goes unanswered, flashing across the face of goal. 
  • At 23:28 (IST) India gets a free-kick after a shoulder-barge on Udanta is considered to be a foul. The free-kick goes to a corner and results in nothing.
  • At 23:45 (IST) Gurpreet makes one of his first errors of the match, pushing a shot straight into the path of a Qatari attacker. But the rebound came into the frame of the goal.
  • At 23:56 (IST) What a nerve-wracking game it was. Although the Qatar players sought chances to a goal every minute, India was lucky to get away somehow. In the absence of Sunil Chhetri, Gurpreet takes the lead and gave one of the best performances of his entire career.
  • At 22:05 (IST) The match ended with a draw, 0-0. India’s dedication paid off and the Blue Tigers managed to get a draw against the hosts. Indian team after India vs Qatar stands in an excellent position to qualify from the group.

Also, Read; Sunil Chhetri's father heaps praise on India's heroics against QatarSunil Chhetri jubilant after India's heroic WC qualifier draw vs Qatar'Really proud of the fight': Sunil Chhetri shares his feelings after the exit from the Intercontinental Cup

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Published September 12th, 2019 at 09:51 IST