On Friday, Afghanistan was able to prevent India from walking away with a win, holding them 0-0 in their Group A encounter of the ongoing 2026 World Cup qualifiers, at Abha’s Damac Club Stadium in Saudi Arabia. After the table toppers Qatar defeated Kuwait 3-0 on Thursday, the standings moved in favor of India, pushing them to the second spot with four points.
While India is second in the group with four points and is comfortably placed for a historic third-round berth in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, the Afghans have a tough road ahead as they are placed third in the Group A standings. While the match today ended in a draw, India and Afghanistan will be facing off against one another once again in Guwahati on Tuesday.
If Kuwait defeats Qatar and Afghanistan wins that match, the June matches will determine whether India advances to the World Cup qualification cycle’s third round and guarantees a spot in the 2027 Asian Cup.
Though head coach Igor Stimac says India will go farther than any Indian team in World Cup qualification history, it will be difficult to achieve until they fortify their offensive line between now and June.
In terms of the game performance, India struggled to play down the center and had poor crossing. Despite having more possession, India’s lack of talent in the last third let them down. Finishing was conventional, and decision-making was sometimes not even that. Instead of starting a play by finding a defender, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu gave up a throw-in.
That was Anwar Ali’s way of trying to play to Akash Mishra; similarly, Vikram Pratap Singh and Lalengmawia Ralte ended up playing to no one. That was clearly the objective from the beginning. Afghanistan’s coach, Ashley Westwood, would have been in a better mood at the break in the Saudi mountains if Sunil Chhetri had not dropped deep to help and if Ralte and Jeakson Singh, who was back after a long injury layoff, had been able to take command of the midfield.
Afghanistan had refused to be pulled out, therefore India was unable to find passes that would beat the center block. This led to a tense game of half-chances when both teams believed they had been denied a penalty each.Manvir Singh tried a flick that would have resulted in an away goal in Kuwait after Chhangte found him, but he couldn’t keep it in the frame.
At the hour, Brandon Fernandes took his spot. Afghanistan came dangerously close to scoring in the 62nd minute when Subhasish Bose made a double replacement in favor of Mishra. Bose was unable to keep up with the tempo of the match. Rahmat Akbari was the recipient of a pass from Mosawer Ahadi that was completed by Bose; however, the midfielder from Afghanistan engaged Omid Popalzay in combat.
When Liston Colaco won a corner kick in the 80th minute, it presented India with their best chance. But Bose could not keep a free header on goal. And that was the last promising chance India had to sneak out with a win!
Both teams will be taking on one another next week at Guwahati, India, a day after the entire nation is done celebrating the color-laden festival of Holi. India, who are still looking for their first victory of the year, will be looking forward to making the most of the home advantage!
