India lets Panama off the hook in a draw

The Indian football team was on the brink of pulling off a mighty upset. That was until a thunderous strike brought the home side back to earth.

Taking on significantly higher-ranked Panama at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in an international friendly here on Friday, India looked on course for a memorable victory after Ryan Williams gave it a 1-0 lead in the 41st minute.

There was a sense of disbelief, mixed with elation, as India continued to dominate. Panama, boasting World Cup pedigree, looked completely

out of sorts. It was left to Panama substitute Omar Valencia to pull the visitor out of the hole. Against the run of play, Valencia unleashed fierce a left-footed strike from well outside the box, leaving custodian Gurpreet Singh Sandhu stranded.

The 68th-minute goal saved Panama, ranked 44th in the world, from an embarrassing defeat. India, ranked 138th, continued to attack without fear, but could not find a second goal.

Admittedly, this was not Panama’s strongest team, with only two players in the starting XI — Cesar Blackman and Tomas Rodriguez — having featured at the World Cup earlier this year.

It was, nevertheless, a spirited performance from the Indians, who consistently created the better chances.

The deadlock was broken when a defensive lapse allowed Williams to run through with only the goalkeeper to beat. A cool finish from the forward sent the loud crowd into a frenzy.

Ecstasy turned to silence later when Valencia produced his stunner, but the home faithful remained engaged thanks to the relentlessly aggressive Indians.

Edmund Lalrindika came closest to securing a match-winner, but missed from close range in the dying minutes.

Manvir Singh fluffed a backheel, allowing Panama to salvage pride.

The result: India 1 (Williams 41) drew with Panama 1 (Valencia 68).