Bangladesh 1–0 India: AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers, Dhaka

Bangladesh produced a memorable night in Dhaka, beating India 1–0 to record a famous victory in the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers.

Shekh Morsalin’s composed finish in the 11th minute proved enough as the home side dug in behind the lead, defended doggedly and held on as the crowd erupted in relief and celebration. For India, it was a grim evening: five qualifying matches without a win, mounting questions about cohesion and choices, and a growing sense that this campaign is sliding into crisis.

The decisive moment arrived early. A lightning burst from Rakib Hossein split India’s defence he raced past Akash Mishra down the flank and rolled a measured pass into the danger area. Morsalin timed his run perfectly, got on the end of it and dinked the ball past Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, who hesitated enough for the youngster to nudge it into the corner. The National Stadium turned into a cauldron; Bangladesh celebrated a win over India in Dhaka for the first time in 22 years.

India’s XI featured an experienced spine: Gurpreet; Rahul Bheke, Anwar Ali, Sandesh Jhingan; Akash Mishra; Nikhil Prabhu, Macarton Louis Nickson, Suresh Singh Wangjam; Vikram Pratap, Lallianzuala Chhangte and Rahim Ali. Bangladesh countered with a midfield led by Hamza Choudhury and Topu Barman and relied on the counter and quick transitions through Rakib and Morsalin.

After the goal, Bangladesh did not sit back completely Hamza’s presence in midfield was influential throughout the first half, breaking up India’s early rhythm and even producing a headed clearance from a dangerous Chhangte chance that kept the visitors from equalising. India, for long spells, struggled to impose themselves: passes went astray, the tempo dropped and the urgency India needed to unlock a compact Bangladeshi defence was missing.

The second half was a different, more frenetic story from India’s perspective. Coach Sunaadh Sagar introduced Mohammed Sanan and Brison Fernandes, taking off Nickson and Chhangte, in a bid to inject pace and invention. Sanan immediately looked lively, producing a moment of genuine threat with a dazzling run and a whipped cross that Brison met with a mistimed header the chance drifting wide and epitomising India’s night of near-misses.

India piled forward, winning corners and set-piece opportunities, but Bangladesh defended in numbers and used clever time-management to break the tempo. Mitul Marma, the Bangladeshi goalkeeper, produced a number of key interventions including a confident save from a Topu Jr counter and a scrambling stop from a Vikram effort and twice required treatment late in the game to stem Indian momentum while also running down the clock.

A controversial moment saw Morsalin’s second-half effort ruled offside, offering India a brief reprieve. There were brief flashpoints a scuffle in midfield after a robust challenge and a booking for Sanan late on but Bangladesh’s discipline held. In the closing stages India threw nearly everyone forward; six minutes were added for stoppages, but despite a fierce late spell and a few heart-stopping scrambles in the box, the Blue Tigers could not fashion a clean, decisive chance.

Individually, a handful of performances stood out. Rakib’s pace and work-rate were crucial in creating the goal and troubling India’s fullbacks all night. Hamza Choudhury controlled the midfield exchanges, repeatedly snuffing out Indian build-up play with well-timed interventions. For India, Vikram and Suresh had moments of quality, and Gurpreet’s shot-stopping prevented the scoreline from getting worse early on; but the team lacked the cohesion and clinical edge required to overturn the deficit.

Tactical questions will linger. India’s midfield was frequently overrun in the first half, and the earlier absence of a creative fulcrum allowed Bangladesh to crowd the middle and force India to route play wide. The late introduction of Sanan changed the tempo but, ultimately, the attacking moves were not tidy enough in the final third. The match also underlined squad availability issues: Ryan Williams, who recently switched allegiance to India, was unavailable due to paperwork delays and will now have to wait for a March debut.

The result has consequences beyond one defeat. With five qualifying matches played and no wins, India now face an uphill task to salvage pride and results. Head-to-head permutations mean India are effectively facing a bottom-place finish in the group, shifting attention to urgent selection and tactical answers ahead of their next fixtures.

For Bangladesh, the victory is a tonic a historic win at home, a much-needed confidence boost and evidence that compact defending, smart transitions and clinical execution can produce results against higher-ranked opponents. The images from the final whistle players embracing, fans roaring, relief writ large across the stadium captured the full emotional weight of the occasion.

Full-time: Bangladesh 1, India 0. Bangladesh celebrate; India head home with answers to find.