The Indian football team is already depleted in the absence of key players. Also, four of those who played against China are suffering with cramps, and playing them against Bangaldesh on Thursday afternoon, less than 48 hours after the first game, could cause serious injuries. Sumit Rathi, Bryce Miranda and Amarjit Singh Kiyam all suffered with cramp during the China match, and the Bangladesh game on September 21 will kick off at 4pm local time, when the heat and humidity will be even more intense. Hangzhou is presently much hotter than Kolkata, with similar humidity levels, making it extremely challenging for players who have arrived with no preparation or training sessions behind them.
In such a situation, the team was desperately looking at reinforcements. While Sana Singh has just arrived in Hangzhou and will be a welcome addition to the team, Gurkirat Singh, the Mumbai City FC player, missed his flight from Hong Kong to add to the team’s woes. Gurkirat landed in Hong Kong at 6:50am and his connecting flight flight to China was an hour later. Anyone who is well-versed with international travel could tell you that’s cutting it fine. More so when you aren’t aware of the airport’s layout and are pressed for time. Now the AIFF and IOA will need to work in tandem to get him to China as soon as possible so that he can be available for selection for the Bangladesh game. Igor Stimac andhis coaching staff need every reinforcement, since winning tomorrow is a non-negotiable for India.
“We can make it to the next round if we put in maximum effort and if we have some luck on our side,” said Stimac after the 5-1 loss to China, where tired legs caught up with India in a nightmare second half. While his boys did their best, it was always going to be mission impossible after checking into their hotel rooms only 14 or 15 hours before kick-off. Among the participating nations, India were the only ones to arrive so late that they couldn’t even manage a single training session.
In short, India need Gurkirat to get to Hangzhou and for Sana Singh to be adequately rested ahead of Thursday’s game. From what we saw against China in the first half, India have a chance, and if they can make the top 16 after what the team has been through, it would be nothing less than a miracle. In some ways, given the odds stacked against them, it would top the three trophy wins in the last few months.
RevSportz will keep tracking developments and updating this story.
Also Read: Clinical China Brush India Aside in Second-Half Rout