India beats Nepal 4-0, retains SAG title

India's Kamala Devi in action during the match with Nepal..... — ***India’s Kamala Devi in action during the match with Nepal…..***

SHILLONG, FEB 15: India retained the South Asian Games women’s football title for the second time in a row with an emphatic 4-0 win over Nepal on Monday at the Jawaharlal

.. the Indian women football team posing after beating Nepal 4-0 to retain the South Asian Games championship

Nehru Stadium, Shillong after a stellar performance by the hosts that saw them outplay their opponents.

Kamala Devi was the star of the match, scoring a brace while Bala Devi and Ashalata Devi added one each for India to win gold.

Nepal looked promising in the early stages and had a cautious looking India on the back foot but soon lost momentum around fifteen minutes into play. Nepal got close to securing a lead at 23rd minute when Anita Basnet placed a free kick which was however, saved by keeper Aditi Chauhan. India’s breakthrough came in the 32nd minute when Bala Devi delivered a beautiful flat cross to Kamala Devi who found the back of the nets.

India went into half time with a 1-0 lead with the game still looking evenly poised.

Eight minutes after the break, Sasmita Malik made an aerial pass to Bala Devi but the forward’s header was saved by Nepal’s goal keeper Lila Lamgade. India’s lead was finally doubled in the 56th minute in the form of a scorcher sent by Kamala after she collected a rebound inside the area from a Sasmita Malik corner. India scored again in the 71st minute, this time through Bala Devi after another cross from Sasmita. Bala controlled the cross and placed an easy shot past Lila to hand the host nation their third goal of the match.

Nepal’s Sabitra Bhandari nearly reduced the deficit with a 78th minute shot but India’s custodian Aditi Chauhan made a brilliant save. Two minutes later, Ashalata Devi delivered a venomous shot from outside the box off a rebound and found goal, thereby leaving very little hope for a Nepal comeback. India controlled the last few minutes, maintaining their calm and eventually finished the final with a memorable 4-0 win in front of a near capacity crowd.

After the match, India’s coach Sajid Yusuf Dhar praised his team’s overall performance, saying that it was a collective effort. “We started off cautiously but soon picked up pace and from there on, everything worked out well for us,” he said while thanking the fans for their support.

Playing her last international match, captain Bembem Devi said that her team mates kept their promise of winning her a gold medal. She also said there was no disappointment in being unable to score as her team mates did the job for India. – By Our Reporter