SportsPosted at: Nov 11 2026 10:48PM


Bhat's penalty, Dubey's late heroics send India into SAFF c’ship semis

New Delhi, Nov 11 (UNI) India booked their place in the SAFF Championship semi-finals with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Maldives in their final Group B fixture at the National Stadium in Dhaka on Wednesday. Suhail Ahmad Bhat converted a first-half penalty before goalkeeper Priyansh Dubey produced a series of crucial saves to protect the defending champions’ lead.
The win took India to six points from three matches, enough to finish at the top of Group B, with Pakistan second on three points. Maldives ended their campaign without registering a point.
India will now meet one of Bangladesh, Bhutan or Sri Lanka in the semi-finals on November 14. Their opponents will be decided after the final Group A encounter between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka later on Wednesday.
Head coach Naushad Moosa made seven changes to the starting XI that edged Pakistan 3-2 in their previous outing. Abhishek Suryavanshi, Muhammed Uvais, Bhat and Ricky Shabong were the four players to retain their places.
Dubey started in goal in place of Arsh Anwer Shaikh, while Chinglensana Singh Konsham was handed the captain's armband following Bijoy Varghese's departure for New Zealand.
Bhat threatened early with an attempt towards the near post that forced Maldives goalkeeper Hussain Shareef into action, but India eventually broke the deadlock from the penalty spot in the 38th minute.
Abdul Rabeeh won possession from Hussain Sifaau Yoosuf before being brought down inside the box by the Maldives defender. Bhat stepped up and calmly sent Shareef the wrong way, finding the bottom-left corner to give India the lead.
The strike was Bhat's third of the football tournament, having scored twice in India's 3-2 victory over Pakistan. Manglenthang Kipgen had netted the other goal in that contest.
Moosa made further changes at the break, bringing on Irfan Yadwad and Kipgen for Rabeeh and Nickson. Vishnu PV replaced Bhat in the 65th minute.
Maldives pushed for an equaliser in the closing stages, but Dubey stood firm. He denied Ali Hamdhaan's free-kick in the 79th minute before keeping out Muzdhaan Hassan's effort five minutes later.
His biggest contribution came deep into stoppage time when he came off his line to block Ethan Ibrahim Zaki’s close-range attempt with his face.
The goalkeeper’s late heroics ensured India avoided another nervous finish. Moosa had stressed the need for greater concentration and better game management after his side conceded twice in added time against Pakistan despite taking a commanding three-goal lead before half-time.
UNI TB RN
Tags: #Bhat's penalty# Dubey's late heroics send India into SAFF c’ship semis
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