Talismanic striker Sunil Chhetri has been left out of the 35 probable named by newly-appointed Indian football team head coach Khalid Jamil for the upcoming CAFA Nations Cup in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It's unlikely that he was dropped on the basis of his form in the four matches he played after coming back from his international retirement. However, it's also not known whether Chhetri himself requested not to consider him for the tournament, to be held later this month, or if he was rested as his Indian Super League (ISL) side Bengaluru FC are yet to start pre-season training.
Bengaluru FC recently suspended salaries for its first-team players and staff, including that of Chhetri, due to uncertainty surrounding the ISL's future. However, Jamil's list of probable includes other Bengaluru FC players like goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, defenders Chinglensana Singh, Rahul Bheke, Roshan Singh Naorem, and midfieler Suresh Singh.
All India Football Federation (AIFF) officials are not willing to comment on the matter, saying "the question should be asked to the head coach".
The 41-year-old Chhetri took international retirement after playing against Kuwait in June last year but made a return for national duty in the match against Maldives in March this year following a request from the then India head coach Manolo Marquez to help the team in the Asian Cup qualifiers third round. Chhetri has played four matches since then and scored once -- in the team's 3-0 win over Maldives.
India drew Bangladesh 0-0 and lost to Hong Kong 0-1 in the Asian Cup qualifiers, leaving the country in a difficult position to qualify for the continental showpiece in 2027. In between India lost 0-2 to Thailand in an international friendly match. Marquez quit after the string of poor performance of the team.
The players will begin training in Bengaluru from Saturday with 22 players having reported to the camp so far. The remaining 13 other players are expected to join the camp after completing their Durand Cup engagements with their respective clubs.
Out of the remaining 13, seven -- Anirudh Thapa, Deepak Tangri, Lalengmawia Ralte, Liston Colaco, Manvir Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad, Vishal Kaith -- are from Mohun Bagan, three -- Anwar Ali, Jeakson Singh, Naorem Mahesh Singh -- are from East Bengal and one -- Jithin MS -- from NorthEast United.
Placed in Group B of the CAFA Nations Cup, India face co-host Tajikistan on August 29, Iran on September 1 and Afghanistan on September 4. The third-place match and the final will be played on September 8 in Hisor and Tashkent (Uzbekistan), respectively.
The AIFF has urged all the clubs to release national team players for the tournament, so that the national team can prepare for the upcoming Asian Cup Qualifiers match against Singapore (home and away) in October.
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