'You have made us proud' - Cricket fraternity lauds Indian football team for remarkable SAFF Championship victory

It turned out to be another proud day for the Indians as the Indian men's football team clinched their ninth South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship after edging past Kuwait in a thrilling final at Sri Kanteerava Outdoor Stadium. It was India's star goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, who guided the Blue Tigers to victory after parrying Kuwait captain Khaled Hajiah's decisive penalty in the shoot-out.

The 2021 SAFF Champions started the title bout on the wrong foot as Kuwait took the lead via Shabib Al Khaldi after a sweeping move in the 14th minute to silence the home crowd. However, Sunil Chhetri's side did not take too long to respond as Lallianzuala Chhangte cancelled out the opener after a brilliant passage of play from the Indians in the 38th minute. 

Emotions were running high from both sides in the summit clash as the players gave their level best in an attempt to break the deadlock in the second half. However, nothing could separate both sides after 120 mins as the title bout headed to the dreaded penalty shoot-out. Both sides missed a penalty each with the score level at 4-4, heading into the sudden death.

Sandhu rises to the occasion in the title bout

India's wideman Naorem Mahesh Singh stepped up to dispatch the penalty to mount pressure on the opposition skipper Khaled Hajiah who made his way to the penalty spot. That is when India's hero throughout the campaign, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, made a fine save to deny the Kuwait skipper, clinching India's record ninth SAFF Championship title, sending a full house crowd in Bangalore into delirium.

The Blue Tigers remained unscathed in their run into the final, lifting the trophy for the ninth time, the most in history, without losing a single match in the competition. The Indian cricketing fraternity, beaming with pride, congratulated Sunil Chettri's men for their remarkable achievement.