India seek inspiration from last two wins in another friendly face-off with Thailand

Pathum Thani: India will take inspiration from their last two wins and talismanic Sunil Chhetri's good form when they face Asian rivals Thailand in an international friendly football match here on Wednesday.

For India, Thailand have been one of the most familiar continental rivals outside of South Asian countries. Both are among middle-rung Asian countries in the FIFA charts.

From the Asian Games to the Asian Cup, from the King's Cup to the Nehru Cup, the history of India versus Thailand clashes in men's football is a long one.

Since the first meeting at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta, when India won 4-1, the two teams have played 26 times. India have won seven matches, while Thailand emerged victorious 12 times, and seven were draws.

The previous two matches, however, were both won by India in 2019.

A sensational 4-1 win at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup in Abu Dhabi, before a narrow 1-0 victory to win bronze at the King's Cup on Thai soil.

Chhetri, who scored the first two goals in the Asian Cup victory, reminisced about the performance that ended India's 55-year wait for a win at the continental showpiece.

"That was a long time back. What I remember of the game was that the team was outstanding in that game. That's also a marker for us to know that on a good day, if we work hard, that's what we can achieve," said Chhetri in a press release issued by the All India Football Federation (AIFF).

"That game was special because a lot of young people did really well. So, we are taking a lot of positivity and inspiration from the game.

"At that time, Thailand were probably better than us on paper by a mile. We were underdogs in that game, and to win the game the way we did — it wasn't just four goals but the way we held ourselves and dominated the game — was really fantastic."

The Indian team will need the 40-year-old talismanic striker's goal-scoring prowess and his inspirational leadership to notch a hat-trick of wins against the Thais.

A win on Wednesday at the Thammasat Stadium will also a big confidence booster before the crucial AFC Asian Cup qualifying round match against Hong Kong on June 10 in Kowloon.

While India are currently placed 127th in the FIFA Rankings, Thailand are 99th. The Thais has risen 14 places since Japanese coach Masatada Ishii took charge in December 2023 and led them to the round of 16 of the Asian Cup a month later.

Though they failed to make it to third round of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, 2024 was a fairly successful year for Thailand. They won the King's Cup and finished runners-up in the ASEAN Championship.

The friendly against India serves as preparation for their AFC Asian Cup Final Round Qualifier against Turkmenistan.

Thailand have players who ply their trade abroad like mid-fielder Jaroensak Wonggorn (Cerezo Osaka in Japanese top tier), midfielder Ekanit Panya (Ehime FC in Japanese second tier) and defender Elias Dolah (Bali United in Indonesian top tier).

The notable names in the Thai squad are captain and mid-fielder Chanathip Songkrasin, who is the most experienced player with 70 caps, forward Supachai Chaided, Swedish-born defender Elias Dolah, midfielder Ben Davis, who has three goals in just six caps, and towering Italy-born defender Marco Ballini.