India beat Nepal 2-0 in SAFF Championship 2023© Twitter
India and Nepal players were involved in a massive on-field spat during the SAFF Championship 2023 encounter in Bengaluru on Saturday. The incident took place in the 64th minute of the Group A match where Rahul Bheke and Bimal Gharti Magar got involved in an altercation. Both footballers went for a header and in the aftermath, Bheke charged at Magar and pushed him slightly. The incident prompted reactions from both sides as all the players got involved in the spat. The referee had to intervene and after some time, the situation was resolved and the match was resumed.
Captain Sunil Chhetri found the target yet again as India beat a spirited Nepal 2-0 in their second group match to book a berth in the SAFF Championship semifinals on Saturday.
Another fight, and now it’s between India and Nepal#INDNEP #SAFFChampionship pic.twitter.com/ieGbQ1aV3F
— BumbleBee 軸 (@itsMK_02) June 24, 2023
Chhetri (61st minute) scored his fourth goal of the tournament before Mahesh Singh (70th) struck to notch up the home side’s second consecutive win. India had beaten Pakistan 4-0 in their opening match on Wednesday with Chhetri scoring a hat-trick.
Chhetri (91 goals from 139 matches) had already become the second most prolific scorer among Asians — after Ali Daei (109 from 148 matches) of Iran — and third among active players in the world. He is the most prolific goal-getter among active Asian players.
With six points from two wins, India qualified for the semifinals from Group A along with Kuwait (also six points), who beat Pakistan 4-0 earlier in the day for their second victory.
India play Kuwait on June 27 to decide the group winner. Nepal and Pakistan are out of the reckoning for a semifinal spot as they lost two matches each.
(With PTI inputs)
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