Pakistan suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of India in their opening match of the SAFF Cup 2023 in Bengaluru. The final scoreline was 4-0, with Sunil Chhetri scoring a hat-trick and Udanta netting the fourth. Pakistan’s defender Easah Suliman believes that the squad’s problematic build-up to the match played a significant role in their loss.
Suliman highlighted the fact that the entire squad arrived in the city just a few hours before the high-profile match at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium. It was very difficult for us today, we had 24 hours of traveling and most of our players only arrived in Bangalore at 5 PM today. It’s not an excuse, it’s a fact, Suliman said after the game.
Pakistan’s squad, comprising 32 members, including players and coaching staff, arrived in Mumbai from Mauritius at 1:00 am on Wednesday morning.
The squad faced an unusual and daunting situation as they could not find seats on a single aircraft, forcing them to split into two groups. The first set boarded a 4:00 am flight to Bengaluru, but the second lot had to take a 9.15 am flight due to some issues with immigration clearance at the Mumbai airport.
The second group only reached their team hotel close to the Kanteerava Stadium past 1:00 pm, barely six hours ahead of the kickoff. The bizarre chain of events, coupled with the weather conditions, made it difficult for the team to regroup and focus on the match.
Despite the loss, Pakistan’s squad remains optimistic about their chances in the tournament. They still have a lot of work to do to recover from their opening setback, but they take solace in the fact that many of their key players were not available for the game.
While Suliman’s defense of the team’s loss has merit, Pakistan will need to put this behind them and focus on their upcoming games. They will face Nepal next before taking on the Maldives. The team will hope for a smoother and hassle-free experience as they prepare for their next fixtures.
