- By Vishal Pushkar
- Tue, 20 Jun 2023 06:42 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
JE Sports Desk: Defending champions Indian men's football team will start their SAFF Championship 2023 campaign with a game against Pakistan at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
The 14th edition of the SAFF Championship has been divided into two groups. India lies in Group A with, Kuwait, Nepal and Pakistan. Group B comprises Lebanon, Maldives, Bhutan and Bangladesh, as per Olympics.com.
Sunil Chhetri-led India are the highest-ranked team in Group A. They are 101st in the FIFA rankings. Kuwait are world No. 143 followed by Nepal at 174. Nepal were the runners-up in the last edition in 2021. Pakistan are ranked lowest at 195th.
The group stage will be played in a single round-robin format. The top two teams from each group will then play semi-final on July 1. The final is scheduled for July 4.
Full Schedule:
June 21 Kuwait vs Nepal 3:30 PM
June 21 India vs Pakistan 7:30 PM
June 22 Lebanon vs Bangladesh 3:30 PM
June 22 Maldives vs Bhutan 7:30 PM
June 24 Pakistan vs Kuwait 3:30 PM
June 24 India vs Nepal 7:30 PM
June 25 Bangladesh vs Maldives 3:30 PM
June 25 Bhutan vs Lebanon 7:30 PM
June 27 Nepal vs Pakistan 3:30 PM
June 27 India vs Kuwait 7:30 PM
June 28 Lebanon vs Maldives 3:30 PM
June 28 Bhutan vs Bangladesh 7:30 PM
July 1 Semi-Final 1 - Group A Winner vs Group B Runners Up 3:30 PM
July 1 Semi-Final 2 - Group B Winner vs Group A Runners Up 7:30 PM
July 4 Final: Winner of Semi-Final 1 vs Winner of Semi-Final 2 7:30 PM
India squad
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Amrinder Singh, Subhasish Bose, Pritam Kotal, Sandesh Jhingan, Anwar Ali, Akash Mishra, Mehtab Singh, Rahul Bheke, Liston Colaco, Ashique Kuruniyan, Rohit Kumar, Udanta Singh, Anirudh Thapa, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Nikhil Poojary, Jeakson Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad, Lalengmawia Ralte, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Rowllin Borges, Nandha Kumar, Sunil Chhetri, Rahim Ali and Ishan Pandita.
Where can I watch the SAFF Championship 2023?
All the matches of SAFF Championship 2023 can be live streamed on the FanCode app/website.
