Pakistan face India in the semi-final of SAFF Championship

Pakistan will face arch-rivals India in the semi-final of the ongoing SAFF Championship 2018 today.

This is Pakistan’s first appearance in the semi-final of the tournament after 13 years where they will take on India, the only unbeaten side in the competition so far.

India were placed in Group B alongside Sri Lanka and the Maldives while Group A consisted of Nepal, Pakistan, hosts Bangladesh, and Bhutan.

Pakistan began their campaign in the championship with a 2-1 win over Nepal in Group A. However, they lost their second group game, 1-0 to hosts Bangladesh before ending their group stage with a 3-0 win over Bhutan.

Nepal, Pakistan, and Bangladesh were all tied on six points in Group A but the former two teams progressed to the semi-final stage courtesy of a better goal difference.

On the other hand, India started their tournament with a 2-0 win against Sri Lanka and then defeated Bhutan 2-0 before progressing to the semi-final.

Head to head, They met 23 times where India have the upper hand with 10 victories against Pakistan’s three. 10 games between the two sides have ended in a draw.

The last time the two sides met was during the 2013 SAFF Championship where India beat Pakistan 1-0.