Podcast
Battling India suffers late Qatar heartbreak
Updated: 2010-11-10 13:27
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On a day of surprising results, defending Asian Games champion Qatar narrowly managed to avoid being victimized again.
Ali Jaralla scored twice in the final 10 minutes as Qatar rallied to beat India 2-1 in Group D play at Huadu Stadium in Guangzhou on Tuesday. India had taken a 19th-minute lead through Ravanan Dharmaraj.
"I think we are far better than India. We created 40 to 50 percent more chances to score," Qatar coach Co Adriaanse said. "We wanted to win this game because we wanted to be the No 1 in the group."
The 2006 Doha Asian Games gold medalist came into the match under pressure after a frustrating 0-0 draw with Singapore on Sunday, although Adriaanse insisted there was no extra strain on his squad.
"If you see the history of football, a lot of teams who organize the games, they are in final because they are at home," he said. "But we're playing far away in China, so there's no pressure on us."
Singapore fell 2-0 to Kuwait in Tuesday's other Group D match. Ali Maqseed and Mashari Al-Azmi scored for the victor.
Hong Kong put itself in prime position to advance from Group E, stunning Uzbekistan 1-0 through a 60th-minute goal by Chan Wai Ho. It is level on four points with group leader the United Arab Emirates, which beat Bangladesh 3-0.
Thailand and Oman, which opened Group F with decisive victories, remained favorites to advance after their 1-1 draw at Guangdong People's Stadium. Amer Al-Shatri scored an own-goal in the 44th minute to give the Thais the lead, only for Moatasim Al-Mukhaini to equalize in first-half stoppage time.
"I'm OK with the result, although we had one more player than the opponent in the field. My players did very well in defense in the first half," Thailand coach Bryan Robson said, referring to the sending off of Oman captain Mohammed Al-Jaber in the 21st minute.
Thailand tops the group with its superior goal difference, having thrashed Pakistan 6-0 on Sunday. Oman opened with a 3-0 defeat of Maldives, which drew 0-0 with Pakistan in Tuesday's other group match.
Questions:
1. What was the final score between Qatar and India?
2. Where was the match played?
3. Who tops the group F league?
Answers:
1. 2-1.
2. Huadu Stadium in Guangzhou.
3. Thailand.
（中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑）
About the broadcaster:
Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.
