“You never know, we may qualify for the next round,” Pritam Kotal hopeful of India’s chances despite getting a tough draw in the Asian Cup

The Indian national team is all set to feature in Asian Cup next year. This is the first time they will be playing the continental showpiece in back-to-back editions. However, they have a big job at hand as they are clubbed in a very tough group.

The Blue Tigers are in group B with strong teams like Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria. They have to put up some fight against these teams and it will be a learning experience for Igor Stimac and his men.

Recently in an interview, one of India’s most experienced defenders Pritam Kotal revealed that the Indian players were not expecting any easy games in the Asian Cup. “This is definitely a tough group. Even we thought something like this could happen when we were discussing the draw. We were in pot four and in general, pots one, two and three consist of good teams,” he told republic.com.

India did really well to qualify for the showpiece event again after making it to the main stage in 2019. This time they were way more comprehensive by beating Hong Kong, Cambodia and Afghanistan. But it will be an uphill challenge for them next year when they travel to Doha, Qatar and face these top-tier Asian teams.

In the 2019 Asian Cup, India missed the knockouts just by a whisker. They slammed Thailand 4-1 before going down after a valiant fight against the United Arab Emirates. Lastly, they needed a point from the Bahrain game and they were too defensive in their approach and it did not end up nicely. India conceded a late penalty and it was enough for Bahrain to win that match and knock the Blue Tigers out of the competition.

While fans are already disappointed looking at the draw, Kotal feels that India do have a chance. He highlighted that the players are confident that they can do well and maybe reach the next round.

“It’s all right. Facing Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria would be a good test for us. We will try to give our best on the pitch and let’s see what happens. You never know, we might qualify for the next round. As players we are confident. I will tell everyone to support us and we will try our best for our nation,” he added.

India will feature in a few tournaments as they prepare for the Asian showpiece event. They will take on Lebanon, Vanuatu and Mongolia in Bhubaneswar in the Intercontinental Cup.