India start as clear underdogs against buoyant Australia in AFC Asian Cup opener

Securing a knockout round berth looks difficult but not impossible as the Indian football team takes on title contenders Australia in its opening group match of the AFC Asian Cup on SaturdayEliminated in the group stage in their last two appearances in 2011 and 2019 India face an uphill task this time also as they have been clubbed with Australia Uzbekistan and Syria in Group BIndias hopes of making it to the round of 16 in the continental showpiece depends on the outcome of the match against Syria on January 23 as Australia and Uzbekistan January 18 are way ahead of them in terms of qualityA win against Syria can put India in the third place in the group offering a chance for a knockout round berth The top two teams from each group along with four best thirdplaced sides from across six groups progress to the knockout round of 16Head coach Igor Stimac and captain Sunil Chhetri have already hinted that Australia 25th in FIFA ranking and Uzbekistan 68th the favourites to take the top two spots in the group are possibly out of reach for IndiaIndia had beaten Syria in the past in the 2007 and 2009 Nehru Cup tournaments and that provides a ray of hope for the Chhetriled team ranked 102 in the worldA knockout round berth will be a huge achievement for India who are making their fifth appearance in the AFC Asian Cup after coming close in the last edition in 2019 and especially for Chhetri who will be playing for the last time in the prestigious tournamentThe 39yearold talisman will be playing in his third Asian Cup after his 2011 and 2019 campaigns having scored four goals in six matches the most by an IndianIndia will start as clear underdogs at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium against mighty Australia the 2015 champions who have come here with ambitions of regaining the title and who won 40 in the 2011 edition group match in the only earlier clash between the two sides in the tournamentAustralia are one of the regular sides in the FIFA World Cup from Asia and they are a confident bunch after making it to the round of 16 in the last edition in Qatar They had made a quarterfinal exit in the 2019 Asian CupThe Socceroos are a mix of experienced and young players with 19 of the 26 currently plying trade in European leagues while only four are playing in the domestic ALeague The remaining three play in Japan and Saudi ArabiaIndia have come into the tournament with the best available squad after three key players defender Anwar Ali defensive midfielder Jeakson Singh and nippy winger Ashique Kuruniyan missed out due to injuriesAlso ReadLong live DubeIndia were also dealt a blow as midfielder Sahal Abdul Samad was ruled out of Sarurdays match against Australia as he is yet to fully recover from the ankle injury he had sustained during an Indian Super League match in early DecemberSahal is not ready yet not 100 per cent fit for the match on Saturday We will do everything we can to have him back for the rest of the tournamentiquest Stimac said of the Mohun Bagan player at the prematch press conferenceChhetri seems to be getting better with advancing age but despite his hunger for goal it will not be easy for him and his teammates to breach the Australian goal manned by captain and experienced custodian Mathew Ryan who won the Asian Cup in 2015 and was part of the squad that qualified for each of the last three World CupsStimacs men would do well to keep the damage to the minimum as the number of goals conceded may play a role later in deciding who makes it to the round of 16 as thirdplace teamWe didnt have much knowledge of Australian team back then 2011compared to minute details we have now We have watched their friendlies against Palestine and Bahrain we know which leagues their players are in and individual clips on them said ChhetriWith this familiarity the fear factor goes outof course they are a couple of levels abovebut at least we know what we are up againstStatistically the two countries have played eight matches against each other with Australia having won four times and India thrice with one game ending in a draw All of Indias wins have however come before 1957The Indian mens senior team is also playing for the first time under Video Assistant Referee VAR in the match against Australia on Saturday VAR technology will make its full debut in Qatar following its successful implementation from the quarterfinal stage in the 2019 edition in the United Arab EmiratesAll 51 matches at the Asian Cup in Qatar will also see VAR complemented by the SemiAutomated Offside Technology SAOT systemThe IndiaAustralia match will also see Japans Yoshimi Yamashita creating history by becoming the first woman referee to take charge of a game in the Asian CupWith agency inputs