The Indian women’s team went down 1-5 to Uzbekistan in its first friendly match at the Yakkasary Stadium in Tashkent on Friday. The Indian side created a flurry of chances and took the lead in the fifth minute but the host bounced back in style to put the pressure back on India.
For India, Bala Devi found the back of the net in the fifth minute. Coach Maymol Rocky’s side came close to doubling its lead almost immediately through Grace, whose shot from the edge of the penalty area was saved by the Uzbek goalie Laylo Tilovova.
As the match opened up, both sides created chances as Indian custodian Aditi Chauhan was forced into a sharp save 15 minutes into the match. On the other end, Bala saw her shot from close range stopped just two minutes later.
Grace was proving to be tough to deal with as she almost found the net in the 22nd minute and nearly created another from a corner.
At the half-hour mark though, Uzbekistan scored the equaliser through forward Lyudmila Karachik, who found the net in the 31st minute. The two teams headed into the break with the host in the lead as defender Maftuna Shoyimova scored in the 38th minute.
The second half began with India earning an early corner but went two goals behind in the 49th minute as Nilufar Kudratova added a third for Uzbekistan.
In the 62nd minute, Uzbekistan scored the fourth goal to extend the host’s lead and substitute Ugiloy Kuchkarova scored another eight minutes from time as the scoreline read 5-1 in favour of the host in the end.
The next match between the two teams will be played on Monday.
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