SAFF Championship: India held by Kuwait in feisty clash as Igor Stimac is sent off, again

The last time Sunil Chhetri faced Kuwait before Tuesday, was back in 2010 when India were at the receiving end of a 1-9 loss. On Tuesday in a feisty SAFF Championship Group A match, India played out a 1-1 draw that, according to Chhetri, felt more like a loss.

‘Forget the rankings’ has been India coach Igor Stimac’s constant talking point at the tournament. The Croatian even put out a tweet before the match trying to explain to Indian fans that although Kuwait are ranked 143 in the world, they are arguably the strongest team India will face in June.

And Stimac was proven right as a quality Kuwait side snatched a draw in stoppage time via an Anwar Ali own goal to cancel out Chhetri’s 92nd goal for India. The late goal meant that Kuwait topped Group A ahead of India on goals scored after both teams finished with seven points and a goal difference of +6 after three matches.