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India and Mauritius played out a goalless draw in the opening game of the Intercontinental Cup at the Gachibowli Stadium in Hyderabad on Tuesday.
The new era under the head coach Manolo Marquez began with a goalless affair, with both teams managing a single shot on each other's target. Despite enjoying a lion's share of possession throughout the game, India lacked sharpness in the final half of the field. Ranked 179, Mauritius displayed grit and were resolute throughout the 90 minutes, which helped them end the night with a valuable point. Despite India firing ten shots and Mauritius launching eight, only one shot each landed on the target, indicating the lack of chances that both teams endured. Mauritius maintained their position by avoiding openly pressing India players with the ball. However, head coach Guillaume Moullec's side threatened on every counter-attack opportunity they got, with Jordan Francois asking questions of India's defence with crosses from the right flank. On a couple of occasions, the India players lost the plot and gifted chances to the visitors. In the 20th minute, a slip from Asish Rai allowed Yannick Aristide to drill a low ball from the left, but none of his compatriots were present to tap the ball home. Four minutes later, there was another slip from Lalengmawia. He lost the ball to Quentin Lalsing, who opted to go for a 30-yard banger, which was easily collected by Amrinder. India started to show some urgency at the half-hour mark, with Asish and Lallianzuala Chhangte's involvement gradually increasing on the right side. In the 35th minute, the Blue Tigers tested Mauritius goalkeeper Kevin Jean-Louis. Thapa found Manvir Singh in the box, who took a touch and stung the gloves of Jean-Louis with a left-footed shot. Two minutes later Mauritius failed to seize their best chance of the first half. Dyllan Collard laid the ball near the edge of the box for Emmanuel Vincent, who blasted a first-time shot a few inches above Amrinder Singh's crossbar. Marquez tried to change the flow of attack by introducing Sahal Abdul Samad and Nandhakumar Sekar at the break. Less than a minute after the restart, Chhangte swung a cross from the right and Jean-Louis required two attempts to keep it out of danger. Mauritius enjoyed a couple of decent chances but had nothing to show for it. The momentum shifted in India's favour after Chhangte went for glory from 25 yards but his shot went high and wide. Eventually, the game reached its climax leading to a goalless draw. (ANI)
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