India huffed and puffed but eventually pulled off a 2-0 win over Nepal in the SAFF Championship at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Saturday.
Second-half goals from skipper Sunil Chhetri and Naorem Mahesh secured India a semifinal spot, along with fellow Group-A side Kuwait, which had beaten Pakistan 4-0 earlier in the day.
India played a scratchy first half. There were as many as eight changes from the side that thrashed Pakistan, with only Chhetri, Anirudh Thapa and Sahal Abdul Samad retained. And faced with a Nepal side that was egged on by a vociferous crowd and was eager to press from the get-go, the home players struggled for fluidity.