SAFF Championship: Sunil Chhetri shines as football overshadows India-Pakistan rivalry

A hush went inside stadium as Sunil Chhetri placed the ball on the penalty spot in the 73rd minute. Chhetri waited for the signal from the referee before taking a couple of steps and thumping the ball into the top corner. The crowd, which had held its breath in anticipation, let out a huge roar to celebrate their hero.

Chhetri, as is his wont, did not celebrate instead walking back towards the centre circle while his teammates mobbed him. This was his fourth international hat-trick, but the fact that India was playing Pakistan did not give the captain any added initiative to go berserk.

Eight minutes later, Udanta Singh, another of Bengaluru’s adopted son put the icing on the cake as India beat Pakistan 4-0 in a highly-anticipated clash on the opening day of the 2023 SAFF Championship at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

A lot of the pre-match build up had focused on the Pakistan team’s last-minute arrival due to visa issues. India’s neighbours only got the required documents a day before the match. Half the team only arrived in Bengaluru hours before kick-off.

“It has been crazy. We were waiting for our visas from Sunday but only got it on Tuesday,” Pakistan...

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