2011 SAFF Cup: A draw will do for India

The Indian national football team know that a draw in their third and final Group A match against Sri Lanka at the 2011 SAFF Cup in New Delhi will do to progress to the semifinals of the tournament. But playing for a draw is always tricky, so Savio Medeira and his men will be wise to play for a win to also try to top Group A.

India have had a difficult start into the tournament. A surprise one-all draw against Afghanistan in their opener and then a hard-earned 5-0 win against Bhutan haven't been really convincing, but at least scoring five goals against Bhutan will hopefully have given India the confidence that they need for the remainder of the tournament.

Savio Medeira is set to try and field the strongest team as per his understanding. Rested Steven Dias is set to return on the right flank for Anthony Pereira; while Samir Naik would get his right-back position back from Nirmal Chetri, if he is deemed fit to play.

Otherwise the Indians tried to re-energize yesterday as the players had little to no time to prepare for the SAFF Cup, a five day camp along with the match against Zambia. A far from ideal preparation and a lot of the players have been playing non-stop since August for Team India and their respective clubs. Fatigue is a factor, but still India is expected to reach the semifinals against a Sri Lanka, who were shocked by an improved Afghanistan in their last match.

The match kicks-off at 18.00 IST and will be live on TenAction+.