India go down to Asian champs Qatar

DOHA: A dominant Qatar beat a 10-man India 1-0 in a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023 preliminary Round 2 qualification match here on Thursday night.

Qatar led 1-0 at half-time, Abdel Aziz Hatim making the difference between the two sides, slotting in a 34th minute winner at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium.

The win took Qatar to 19 points, seven ahead of Oman who have two matches in hand and will face Felix Sanchez's side on Monday. India stay on three points from six matches.

Bangladesh and Afghanistan shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw in the other Group E tie on Thursday.

India's other qualification matches are against Bangladesh on June 7 and Afghanistan on June 15. India are bidding to qualify for the 2023 Asian Cup, though they are out of contention for next year's World Cup.

While Qatar are ranked 58th, India are 105th.

The last time the two teams met, in September 2019, India had held the Asian champions to a goalless draw. IANS

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