In what is becoming a familiar result, India once again found themselves stonewalled by Afghanistan in an international football match. It’s almost a rite of passage for an India head coach now – it started with Igor Stimac, and it’s now Khalid Jamil’s turn to be frustrated. Each has had to face the reality of India’s declining fortunes in South Asia.
That Afghanistan earned a draw against India in the CAFA Cup is no longer a surprise. Since 2019, both teams have played each other six times in international tournaments or qualifiers, with Afghanistan managing four draws and a win.
On Thursday, Jamil’s team lagged behind in possession (60-40), total shots taken (7-3), shots on target (3-2) and corners won (4-1). A case can be made for India sitting back and defending against Tajikistan and Iran, but when the same tactics is applied against Afghanistan, ranked 161 in the world, the question arises that where does this approach exactly lead to, since results are also not forthcoming?
No goals in our last group stage game.
Now, we await the result of 🇹🇯🆚🇮🇷 tonight to know our fate in the #CAFANationsCup2025 ⏳
#AFGIND #BlueTigers #IndianFootball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/479qj9j8tI— Indian Football Team (@IndianFootball) September 4, 2025
The primary reason for India participating in this tournament was to prepare for the two upcoming AFC Asian Cup qualifiers against Singapore in October. The evidence on the pitch suggests this will be a tough ask.
However, India has shown zero regard for rankings. They beat higher-ranked Tajikistan with two quick opening goals but then were lethargic in creating any scoring chances of note against Afghanistan, similar to how they were against Hong Kong at the Kai Tai Stadium, where they conceded a late goal and lost a winnable away game – once again against a lower-ranked team.
Wasteful
At Hisor on Thursday, the first 10 minutes mirrored how the rest of the match would unfold. Afghanistan, when in possession, would try to string together passes and not be wasteful. India would not be able to string together three successful passes before giving it away on the cheap, and without challenge.
Afghanistan had two chances of note all game. The first came in the 23rd minute – a rasping drive from outside the box by Ali Reza Panahi that was bound goal-wards. But Gurpreet Singh Sandhu dropped low to his right and palmed the ball away. It would be his second-best save of the day.
In the 70th minute came the best chance of the game. Afghanistan won a corner and fashioned a grounded cut-back from Panahi into the centre of the box. With just Sandhu to beat, Yama Sherzad unleashed a shot but the Indian pulled off a reflex save, tipping the ball onto the crossbar.
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The two saves from Sandhu, who has recently made a comeback to the Indian squad after being dropped by previous head coach Manolo Marquez, is another instance of the national team needing the Bengaluru FC custodian to bail them out of trouble.
In large parts, India’s defensive showing at the CAFA Cup has been down to Gurpreet’s shot-stopping abilities. Offensively, the team continues to show the same toothlessness that dogged the final days of Stimac’s tenure, became a central theme of the eight games under Marquez, and has now started to rear its head against Jamil as well. With one possible game remaining in the CAFA Cup, the Indian coach will need to be at his resourceful best to come up with a solution before the double-header against Singapore with a spot at the AFC 2027 Asian Cup on the line.
