First Half
India’s starting line-up (4-4-2): Karanjit Singh, Rahim Nabi, Gourmangi Singh, Mahesh Gawli (Capt.), Sameer Naik, Steven Dias, Climax Lawrence, Jewel Raja, Clifford Miranda, Sunil Chhetri, Joachim Abranches.
The match had a lively start with teams matching each blow by blow. India tried to attack using the mobility of Nabi and Clifford Miranda on the wings, while Malaysia looked to take advantage of the inexperienced Jewel Raja in central midfield.
India curved out a good chance on the 8th minute, when Abranches’ well directed cross just failed to reach an on rushing Chhetri. Two minutes later Steven Dias came very close to giving India the lead, as the Malaysian custodian failed to gauge a cross, but his shot missed the goal by inches.
Chhetri and Abranches were frequently switching their positions as the former crossed towards the Dempo striker in 15th minute, only to see his cross miss the intended target. Two minutes later Sunil Chhetri received a pass from Nabi but failed to pull the trigger despite dribbling past two Malaysian defenders.
India got their first corner in 20th minute and Clifford Miranda took a short one, passing towards Steven Dias; but Dias’ final delivery was poor as Malaysian defense dealt with the cross without any problem. By this time Malaysia had found their footing as they began to pepper Karanjit with shots from outside the box. The Salgaocar ‘keeper made a sharp save off Abdul Yahaya in 25th minute.
India almost conceded a goal, half an hour into the game, when Karanjit failed to clear a corner. However, the experienced Mahesh Gawli was present at the right place at the right time with a timely block. The hosts looked pretty shaky in defense at this point and they finally conceded a goal, three minutes from halftime, as Rahim Shafiq beat Karanjit.
India tried hard to find an equaliser in rest of the first half and came close once but Abranches was caught offside as he tried to meet Chhetri’s cross. The first half ended with Malaysia leading by a solitary goal.
Second Half
The hosts didn’t make any substitutions in half time despite Samir Naik and Steven Dias having forgettable first halves. The home team earned a corner in 50th minute but Clifford Miranda yet again disappointed with his delivery. A minute later the boys in blue got a free kick just on the edge of penalty box – Steven Dias’ freekick went over the cross piece without troubling the Malaysian custodian. India could have been down 2-0 in 53rd minute after a rapid counter attack from Malaysia sliced open the central defence. Yahaya had a golden chance to extend his team’s lead but his shot just missed the goal.
Savio Medeira made his first substitution in 55th minute as a misfiring Dias went off. India’s play had become over-dependent on wings by this time but crossing from both wingers and full-backs was extremely poor.
The Mohun Bagan duo of Jewel Raja and Nabi tried to make way into the Malaysian defense on the hour mark but the latter was adjudged offside. Jeje replaced Abranches in 61st minute and immediately threatened the Malaysian defense. The energetic Pune FC striker beat his marker but his shot was parried away by the Malaysian ‘keeper.
India’s made several more attempts to infiltrate the Malaysian penalty box but failed to create any significant chance. Ralte replaced Miranda and Mehrajuddin replaced Climax Lawrence, as India desperately tried to score an equalizer. Jeje tried to set up Chhetri in 75th minute but his pass was overweight, and Chhetri failed to reach it. Three minutes later Mehraj was in a good position to unleash a long ranger but he missed the target.
Ten minutes before the final whistle, United Sikkim front man Sushil replaced Chhetri. India finally found the equalizer in 88th minute as Rahim Nabi showed excellent instincts to score a header from a corner kick. Nabi began his career as a striker and years of playing in midfield and defense hasn’t diminished his instincts for goal.
The match ended with a goal apiece to India and Malaysia. The hosts didn’t play well in first half but showed grit and resilience in last 30 minutes to earn a draw. Savio Medeira’s substitutions injected some much needed pace into the team but he will be worrying about the form of his wingers.
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