India, Tajikistan draw goalless

The battle for the top spot in the Group-4 qualifier in the Asian Football Confederation under-20 championship intensified as Tajikistan and India played out a goalless draw at the Salt Lake stadium in Kolkata, on Friday.

Both teams, having won their opening encounters on Wednesday, are level on four points after two matches, though India lead the points table by virtue of a better goal difference.

Tajikistan, however, have the advantage of playing minnows Bhutan in their third and last match on Sunday.

Only the winners of the group get a passport to the final round in Qatar, in October.

In a later match, Bhutan held Kyrgyzstan goalless. Both teams had lost their opening matches.

The handful of spectators at the stadium witnessed a keenly contested encounter in the first half, with both sides getting a number of opportunities.

The ball moved fast from one end to the other though India had the lion's share of the initiatives.

The second half, in contrast, was a tame affair as the players got tired and slowed down as the match wore on.

But the hosts came closest to scoring in this session. Malswama Tluanga sent a pass to Subhash Chakraborty from the right and Syed Rahim Nabi foxed a couple of defenders with a deft dummy. Chakraborty unleashed a powerful left-footer which hit the crossbar much to the dismay of the Indian supporters.

The woodwork also came in the way of the Tajiks, when Ismailov Jamshed's 25-yarder rammed into the post minutes before half-time.

Tajiks, who were on the defensive for the better part of the first half, tried to snap up the initiatives in the last few minutes before the recess.

Khuseinov Shuratdjon, who was adjudged man of the match, scripted one of the best moments of the play with a free-kick from 22 yards that swung and dipped in, but Indian custodian Sathiesh Kumar rose to the occasion to tip the ball over the bar.

Indian chief coach Islam Akhmedov effected two changes in the starting line-up, bringing in Palash Karmakar for Amjad Ali Khan and Bhuvan Joshi for James Singh.

The Indian defence, which looked disorganised in the first match, put up a better show today. However, the tendancy of the midfielders to hang on to the ball prevented the Indian strikers from breaking through.