Doha, Sept. 7 -- India suffered a 1-2 defeat at the hands of Qatar in their second Group H encounter of the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers, at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Qatar, on Saturday.

The hosts led 1-0 at half-time. Al Hashmi Mohialdin (18') had put Qatar in the lead early on, before Muhammed Suhail (52') equalised. However, a Jassem Al Sharshani (67') penalty ensured the three points for Qatar, as per the AIFF website.

Buoyed by their 2-0 victory against Bahrain in the last match, India made a quick start to the game, Suhail getting an early chance, where he shot just inches over the crossbar from outside the box in the second minute. The hosts slowly gained control of the game, however, looking to make inroads into ...