India, Sept. 5 -- In the 84th minute against Tajikistan, Khalid Jamil introduced Roshan Naorem and Chinglensana Singh. That meant India had four full-backs and three central defenders on the pitch trying to see out their first match in the CAFA Nations Cup. It was the reverse of Manchester United ending the 2023-24 FA Cup quarter-final against Liverpool with only two regular defenders. But like that 4-3 win, as frenzied as it was fabulous, for Manchester United, it worked for Jamil.

Buoyed by a crowd of over 17,000 in the dish-like Hisor Central Stadium, Tajikistan threw everything at India but Jamil's men held on to eke out a fantastic 2-1 win. In his first match as India coach, Jamil showed what can be expected on his watch. Which is: ...