Bangladesh made a memorable debut in the SAFF Futsal Championship by holding arch-rivals India to a thrilling 4–4 draw in their opening match on Wednesday at the Nonthaburi Indoor Stadium in Thailand.
With both teams still building experience in international futsal, the contest produced end-to-end action and constant momentum shifts, keeping the crowd engaged until the final hooter.
Bangladesh opened the scoring through Moin Ahmed, who finished calmly after a precise pass from captain Rahbar Wahed Khan to register the nation’s first-ever goal in a SAFF futsal tournament. India responded soon after as Anmol Adhikari brought his side level.
Before the first-half timeout, Bangladesh regained the lead when Moin turned provider, setting up Rahbar to make it 2–1. However, the advantage did not last long. Just before the break, a shot from India’s Lalsawmpuia deflected off goalkeeper Tuhin and went into the net for an unfortunate own goal, leaving the teams tied 2–2 at halftime.
India edged ahead early in the second half when Lalrinzuiala’s pass was headed home by Roluahpuia. Bangladesh once again showed resilience as Moin struck his second goal of the match, firing in from a tight angle after receiving a pass from Intishar to level the score at 3–3.
The match intensified in the closing minutes. Roluahpuia struck again to give India a 4–3 lead, but Bangladesh refused to concede defeat. Captain Rahbar capitalised on a defensive error by Anmol Adhikari and produced a powerful finish to restore parity at 4–4.
Bangladesh created a few late chances to snatch a famous victory, but the final whistle ensured the points were shared.
Earlier, the tournament’s opening match between Sri Lanka and Bhutan also ended in a draw, finishing 3–3.
Bangladesh will play the Maldives in their next match on Friday.
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh women’s futsal team will begin their campaign later on Wednesday against India, who had earlier beaten the Maldives 11–1 in their opening fixture.
Bd-pratidin English/TR
