India, Nov. 21 -- India's defeat in Dhaka on Tuesday - a new chapter in an Asian Cup qualifying cycle that has been an unending saga of disappointment - stoked memories of an earlier trip there. One that began with a defeat that had surprised more than the 0-1 loss to Bangladesh but was also a campaign that gave India a midfield general of the kind they have not had since.

Climax Lawrence did not play in the 0-1 defeat to Pakistan, the first time India's men lost to them in a SAFF event, but stood out for the rest of the competition once he was drafted into the 11 against Afghanistan. He was 23 then and till 2012 when he retired, Lawrence made the heart of the midfield his own. Strong in the air, with solid interceptions and an impressiv...