India No 1 Gurpreet Singh Sandhu commmitted a blunder, the sort of which is common in school football, but considered criminal at the international level.

Paulo Josue accepted the gift to give Malaysia the lead in the 19th minute of their friendly against India at Hyderabad.

India's Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, way out of his goal, tries to control the ball. He missed it, allowing an easy goal for Malaysia. Photo: Screengrab/JioCinema
India's Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, way out of his goal, tries to control the ball. He missed it, allowing an easy goal for Malaysia. Photo: Screengrab/JioCinema

Gurpreet, playing the sweeper-keeper, thought he could easily control a looping ball. But it appeared comical as the ball bounced over his 6 ft 6 inches frame. The Malaysian striker then outran a stranded Gurpreet to calmly finish.

Gurpreet, who plays for Bengaluru FC in the Indian Super League, has been a regular member of the senior national men's team since 2011.

India went into the Malaysia friendly without a win since November 2023. India's last win came against Kuwait (1-0) in an AFC World Cup qualifier in Kuwait City. Gurpreet was the goalkeeper in that match. India, now managed by Manolo Marquez, are 125th in the FIFA rankings.

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