Superman goalie Gurpreet 'saves' the day
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu's heroics between the sticks ensured the Qatar attack was kept at bay, as India restricted the Asian champion to a goalless draw.
Published : Sep 11, 2019 00:58 IST
India goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu put up a heroic display at goal in Doha on Tuesday as the Blue Tigers held Qatar to a 0-0 draw in the FIFA 2022 World Cup qualifier game at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium.
In Sunil Chhetri's absence, the captain's armband was handed to Gurpreet, who led by example.
The Bengaluru FC custodian kept the Qatar attack at bay as he pulled off several exceptional saves, which proved to be pivotal in India's result at the final whistle.
In the first half, Gurpreet blocked Qatar captain Hassan Al-Haydos' shots from the left wing, and minutes before the half-time whistle, the Indian custodian pulled off two back-to-back saves to deny skipper Al Haydos again, and star striker Almoez Ali.
Gurpreet's solid display between the sticks continued in the second half as Abdelkarim Hassan and Abdurisag Ismaiel couldn't get a taste of the goal either.
In the end, Gurpreet's 11 saves of Qatar's 27 shots meant that India walked off with a point and a clean sheet.
In Group E, India now sits fourth with one point from two matches. Qatar leads the group standings with four points, followed by Oman and Afghanistan, which have three points each. Bangladesh, whom India faces next on October 15 in Kolkata, sits at the bottom with no points.