Talismanic Indian forward Sunil Chhetri has encouraged his teammates to shift their focus to the upcoming match against Uzbekistan following a 0-2 loss to the formidable Australia in their AFC Asian Cup opener.
The Blue Tigers displayed resilience, managing to keep the Asian giants at a goalless stalemate during the first half. However, Australia, who reached the pre-quarterfinals of the World Cup 2022, asserted their dominance with goals from Craig Irwine (50') and substitute Jordan Bos (73').
"There are pros and cons to this game. It’s not easy to play the best team in Asia," Chhetri said via AIFF website.
"We are not used to playing sides like these, as we don’t play against them very often, so you never know what to expect."
The Indian captain, who initiated his career in 2005, was unable to increase his goal tally of 93. However, he emphasised that the team's current focus is on their upcoming match against Uzbekistan on January 18.
“It’s a mixed bag of feelings right now. Once we watch the videos, perhaps we will gain more confidence and work on the things that we could have done better,” he said.
“Uzbekistan are not Australia, but they’re a good side nonetheless. So it will be a big challenge in that game too,” he added.
India have two remaining matches in the group, with Syria as their final opponents in the group stage.
There's still hope for the Blue Tigers as they have the opportunity to qualify for the last-16. In addition to the top two teams advancing directly from each group, making it 12 teams from six groups, the top four third-placed teams also progress to complete the pre-quarters lineup.
Goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu had a game of contrasting halves – delivering a robust performance under the woodwork in the first, while the second half proved to be one to forget.
Expressing satisfaction with his team's performance, Indian head coach Igor Stimac said, “I am proud of my boys. They showed that they are a bunch of honest, hard-working people, who are committed to whatever we ask of them.”
India demonstrated that a team positioned 102nd in the FIFA World Rankings can effectively compete against a team ranked 77 places higher.
“It’s frustrating when you have to play teams like these. It would probably not have been so, had it not been a team of Australia’s calibre,” said Stimac.
“The second half was not good for us. We could not get out of the zone. The expectations were on the Australian players. They’re game-ready, so I am overall happy with the result.”
Sandesh Jhingan led India’s backline and soldiered on with a hastily bandaged forehead and stitched-up cuts above each eyebrow.
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