India lifts SAFF Championships 2023 trophy for 9th time; beat Kuwait 5-4 in penalty shootout

SAFF Championships 2023: In Football, India have lifted the SAFF Championships trophy for the ninth time, beating Kuwait 5-4 in the penalty shoot-out in the final after a 1-1 stalemate at the end of regulation time at Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru last night. A thrilling penalty shootout saw the game go down the wire after Udanta Singh missed his kick. Goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh again turned out as the hero for the Indian side, saving the final kick from the Kuwaiti captain.

The Indian team made it to the final after beating Lebanon in a semi-final while Kuwait defeated Bangladesh 1-0 in the other last-four clash.

This was the second meeting of India and Kuwait in this tournament with the earlier Group stage meeting ending in a 1-1 draw.