Australia beats India in Asian Cup group opener
Al Rayyan (Qatar): Australia dominated India as they defeated the South Asian side 2-0 in their Asian Cup Group B opener in front of a packed Indian fan base at the Ahmed Bin Ali Stadium on Saturday.
After a tough opening 45 minutes, Australia got on the board through Jackson Irvine, before Jordan Boas took a 2–0 lead second half after coming on as a substitute.
The encounter almost felt like a home game for India, with the crowd at the Ahmed Bin Ali Stadium largely made up of Indian expatriate fans in Doha and they made their presence felt by roaring the team despite Australia’s early dominance.
Encouraged by the crowd, Indian captain Sunil Chhetri missed a golden opportunity when he sent a header wide, but Australia tightened the screws after that and took control as India rarely managed to get out of their own half. .
With India trailing, Connor Metcalfe had an effort parried by Gurpreet Singh and a close shot from Mitchell Duke was blocked by Sandesh Jhingan, while Martin Boyle skied a volley from the edge of the six-yard box. .
India held firm until the break, but five minutes after the restart Gurpreet failed to deal with a cross, his effort falling to Irwin, who did not need a second invitation to score.
The goal left India in trouble and Australia scored a second goal in the 73rd minute when Riley McGree dribbled into the box and passed to Boas and scored seconds later.
The match saw Japan’s Yoshimi Yamashita become the first female referee to officiate in a men’s Asian Cup tie, with assistant referees Makoto Bozono and Naomi Teshirogi making it an all-female trio.
