Skipper nets twice in landmark 100th cap as India stroll into Intercontinental Cup Final
Captain Sunil Chhetri couldn't have written a better script for his 100th international game as he struck twice to power India into the final of the the Intercontinental Cup with a convincing 3-0 win over Kenya here on Monday.
Chhetri earned a penalty and broke the deadlock in the 68th minute while Jeje lalpekhlua doubled the home team's lead with his pile driver in the 71st minute.
Chhetri ended it in the best possible manner, scoring in the stoppage time (90+1) off a Balwant Singh assist, as fans went berserk.
The outpouring of emotion over the last two days was followed by a heavy downpour, which threatened to play spoilsport. Puddles of water had formed in the field of play and what followed was a scrappy first half.
As the rain stopped, the groundsmen worked hard to get the water off the field throughout the half-time interval. The talismanic Chhetri will remember the groundsmen's efforts, which probably saved the landmark game from turing into an anti-climax.
After the game, the Blue Tigers walked up to the fans and acknowledged their presence, with Chhetri taking his players for a lap of honour as his proud family savoured the moment from the stands.
"If this is the kind of turnout that is going to come to watch us, we can give our lives on the pitch," an emotional Chhetri said after the match.
While the Kenyans looked better in the first half and had territorial advantage despite unfamiliar conditions, India hit back strongly after the break and looked to score.
The home team's intent bore fruit as it slammed in two goals in three minutes.
While the first half saw passes dragging along the field, and the ball not bouncing, the period of play after the break was a far cry.
long ball was the way to go, but India managed to string together a few short passes and moves, too.
The moment the Mumbai Football Arena was waiting for arrived when Chhetri earned a contentious penalty when he fell inside the box while trying to chest down a delivery from wide right.
After a delay over protests by the Kenyan players, Chhetri shot on the left side of the goalkeeper, who got a hand to it but could not stop the ball.
The crowd went jubilant and there was more to follow as Jeje unleashed a pile driver off a rebound into the top corner from the edge of the box.
Befitting the occasion, Chhetri gave India another goal as he scored following a link-up with substitute Balwant Singh. The goal meant a lot to the skipper as he went over to the fans to celebrate.
Chhetri had issued to a rallying call to the fans, and they turned up in numbers to mark a special night for the captain and his team. The official total attendance was 8890 in the stadium that can accommodate around 10500 people.
Coach Stephen Constantine started with an unchanged XI, two days after the 5-0 demolition of Chinese Taipei.
‘O CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN!’
Bhaichung Bhutia and IM Vijayan were there, the fans too were there, and the magnet that drew them all into the Mumbai Football Arena for India's Intercontinental Cup game against Kenya here on Monday was Sunil Chhetri.
Captain Chhetri got, deservingly so, the audience he sought after his impassioned plea struck a chord with fans, who turned up in droves for India's second game.
Chhetri, playing in his 100th international game, was felicitated by former skippers Bhutia and Vijayan. He was also given a guard of honour by his team-mates as his wife and parents watched from the stands.
"I never thought this would become so big. When you are representing the national team, you deserve an audience," Chhetri said before the start of the game.
long queues of fans were seen in front of the stadium for tickets to watch the game and the crowd started trickling in from early evening.
The 33-year-old Chhetri made an emotional appeal to football lovers to come and support the Indian team, which is using this tournament as preparation for the 2019 Asian Cup.
The video was uploaded a day after he slammed a hat-trick in India's 5-0 demolition of Chinese Taipei in the tournament opener, and he found instant support from the country's top cricketers, including current captain Virat Kohli and the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.
After a lukewarm response, people finally turned up to cheer the Men in Blue.
Chhetri had uploaded a video on Saturday and urged the fans to support the team. Mumbaikars responded by thronging the Mumbai Football Arena in suburban Andheri despite it being a Monday evening.
Chhetri is the country's leading scorer with 59 goals from 99 international caps, placing him third in the world's leading scorer's list. He is the second Indian to appear in 100 international games after former skipper Baichung Bhutia.
Anil Kumar said that he was inspired by the video and came to watch the game from Ghaziabad, a township near Delhi.
Another fan, Adam Cardoz, said that it was because of Chhetr's video that he decided to come and watch the game.
Adam, with his friends, came all the way from Badlapur in Thane district, which is around 70 kms from the stadium.
Nikhil, from Gujarat, said that he has been backing the team since the last four years.
Another young fan, Chandranil Mazumdar, remarked that he saw the Chhetri video at least thrice and decided to support the team.
When the Indian team bus arrived at the Andheri Sports Complex, fans greeted Chhetri and he waived at them.
Meanwhile, a person called Nikunj lotia has claimed that he has bought the entire General Stand 4, which has about 1000 seats.
"Have booked entire STAND NUMBER 4 for all you football fanatics! All you have to do is just be there and cheer! More details on stories! #seeyousoonilchhetri #seeyouall," lotia posted on his Twitter handle.
Mumbai District Football Association president Aaditya Thackeray tweeted, "I'm glad that after @chetrisunil11's heartfelt appeal, so many of us have responded and got the seats to #BacktheBlue.
This is only the beginning, let's make sure each game that @IndianFootball plays is houseful! They pour their heart out for us, least we can do is be there!!"