India vs Pakistan, SAFF Championship 2023 Highlights: Chhetri hat-trick leads IND to 4-0 win

“Happy to keep clean sheet, happy to start tournament. Matches in these kinds of conditions are never easy Happy people turned up, this is amazing, this is what we play for.”

The referee blows the whistle, India keep a clean sheet for the seventh time in a row! Cordial handshakes between the two sides at the end of the game, no spill over of the ugly scenes at the end of the first half. Another Chhetri hat-trick and a good finish towards the end from Udanta Singh gives India a straightforward victory. 

There isn't much left in this match and it would be quite a surprise if a goal goes in from either side, especially Pakistan. India most likely will take a seventh consecutive clean sheet here.

89 mins: Just a minute left in regulation time but there will be a significant amount of stoppage time. India have brought on Liston Colaco for Sunil Chhetri, who gets a standing ovation from his home crowd. This is where he plays in the ISL as well for Bengaluru FC and aren't the fans elated to have seen him score a hat-trick today. He has been quite brilliant, as is almost always the case, in most other areas of the field as well.

Ball over the top allows Udanta to break, he controls with one touch and slots it past the Pakistan goalkeeper. India running away with it now. 

Hat-trick for Chhetri. He puts into the top right corner this time. Hardly any celebrations as he now becomes the second-highest Asian goalscorer in international football. 

72 mins: Chhetri taken down as he makes a charge into the box by Mohammad Sufyan. It was as blatant a push as it gets and the referee points to the spot. Chhetri on a hat-trick…

A free kick for India from near the touchline on the right. Sahal floats it in and a a Pakistani defender ends up hitting the underside of the bar in a bid to clear it. It bounces just off the line and Hanif tips over the bar. 

65 mins: Anirudh Thapa off for Rohit Kumar. Pritam Kotal taken off for Nikhil Poojary. 

A period of possession for Pakistan but it doesn't really come to anything. It has to be said that India have had just one clear cut chance apart from the two goals really throughout this match. Both those goals were practically gifted by Pakistan and jet lag is a difficult thing to be dealing while playing international football. If it wasn't for those, this match would have still been 0-0. Considering India are looking to establish themselves in the top 100 of the FIFA rankings, this does not reflect well on them at all.

Pakistan make two changes and it is greeted with loud boos. Any friendly emotions from the crowd towards the away side before the start of the match is long gone now.

50 mins: Pakistan lose the ball in India's half and the hosts charge forward, Kuruniyan receives the ball from just outside the box and takes the shot. It loops over the bar.

48 mins: Kuruniyan up from the left, this time he can only square it from the touchline and can't think about the shot. He does that, the goalkeeper parries it straight to Samad who has to only kick it into the empty net but he flufs it! The ball rolls harmlessly wide. 

46 mins: Kuruniyan charges down the left into the box, gets caught in 2 minds about squaring it or taking the shot. Ends up passing it to the Pakistan goalkeeper.

India get into a huddle briefly before the players go to their positions. A little pitch invader situation to deal with after that as the adventurous spectator, who can say goodbye to his chances of seeing the second half, poses with a dumbfounded Sunil Chhetri before being escorted off.

It all started with Kotal losing the ball on the touchline right at the technical area. Pakistan were given the throw-in but Stimac was furiously asking for a foul. He then went and knocked the ball out of the Pakistan player's hand, after which all hell broke lose. Pakistan clearly lost their heads completely in that skirmish and some of their players even seemed to be charging the referee over there  but the fact remains that a red card is the least of what a coach would get for interfering with play. 

Well regardless of how silly Stimac was to do that, one has to give him credit for giving this the spice that an India-Pakistan match is normally associated with. It was all petering away until then with India utterly dominant. Along came Stimac. There could be more repercussions for that little skirmish after this match.  

45 mins: And a yellow card for Pakistan's head coach as well. Jhinghan and Nabi of Pakistan have also been booked. Assistant coach Mahesh Gawli, the former Indian defender, is now in  the touchline for the hosts. Goodness knows what Stimac was thinking at the time.  Chhetri and Pakistan captain Hassan Bashir also get a talking to from the ref. The pair had been advocating for calm and peace during the entire skirmish but Chhetri shows the ref that he is not happy with his coach being sent off. 

45 mins: It all seems to start with Stimac taking the ball when Pakistan were given the throw in. Then quite a few Pakistan players get in the face of the referee as well. Stimac knocked the ball out of Abdullah Iqbal's hands as he prepared to take the throw in. Utterly needless there from the Indian coach.

40 mins: Big cheers ring around the stadium as Chhangte puts the ball in the back of the net. But it won't matter as the flagman had called for off side long befopre Chhangte lined up his shot. He gets some words from the referee after that, probably about the fact that he almost ignored the offside whistle. 

Pakistan won a corner after after Kotal gave a trademark cruncher to Otis. It was fizzed high and safe into the hands of Amrinder. It has started raining quite heavily now. 

31 mins: Chhetri takes the free kick and it fizzes just wide of the near post. He has already equalled Mokhtar Dahari of Malaysia as the second-highest scoring Asian player of all time, and joint-fourth highest overall. This would have got him ahead. 

26 mins: Mohammad Sufiyan cuts in from the left and takes a shot from a quite ridiculous angle. The shot is not even close to being on target. India then break, Thapa is fouled on the left about 25 yards from goal and India win a free kick. Yellow card for Pakistan's Rao Omer Hyat as well and Chhetri is now standing over it. Will it be a first half hat-trick for the Indian captain? 

A very well worked move from India ends with Subhashish's crossing being blocked quite well by the Pakistan full back covering him. The corner kick from the left comes to nothing. One way traffic. India 2-0 Pakistan. 

All a bit messy at the moment but the gap in class is clearly visible on the field. India are largely calm in possession, Pakistan rarely coming forward when the opposition have the ball. Amrinder, thus far, only collecting back passes from his teammate and sending the ball back into the outfield and nothing more.