AFC Asian Cup: India vs Australia Preview, Head-To-Head, Lineup, Live Streaming and Telecast

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AFC Asian Cup, India vs Australia: India are all set to kickstart their AFC Asian Cup 2023 campaign as the Blue Tigers face their toughest hurdle at the beginning of the tournament as they face World No. 25 Australia in the opening Group B match on Saturday (January 13).

World No. 102 India are the lowest ranked in Group B, which also includes Uzbekistan (68) and Syria (92), and will be looking to finish at least third among the four nations with the top two getting direct entry while a third-place finish will have an outside chance to the knockout stages.

Match: India vs Australia
Kick-off time: 5:00 PM IST
Location: Al Rayyan
Stadium: Ahmed Bin Ali Stadium
Capacity: 45,032
Date: January 13, 2024

India vs Australia: Head-to-Head Record

This will be the 9th encounter between India and Australia at the senior level with their latest encounter coming at this very tournament 13 years ago. The match ended 4-0 in Australia's favour with their legendary striker Tim Cahill scoring a brace. Indian captain Sunil Chhetri is the only footballer from that game, who may play a role in Saturday's match as well.

Matches Played in all competitions: 8

Australia Win: 5

India Win: 2

Draws: 1

Australia Goals: 24

India Goals: 23

AFC Asian Cup: India vs Australia Preview

At the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium on Saturday, India will begin as the overwhelming underdog against strong Australia, the 2015 champions, who have come here hoping to win the title again. Australia are one of the usual Asian teams in the FIFA World Cup, and they have a lot of confidence after reaching the round of 16 in the previous tournament in Qatar. They have exited the 2019 Asian Cup in the quarterfinals.

Only four of the 26 Socceroos presently play in the domestic A-League, making them a mix of young and experienced players plying their trade in Europe. 19 of them are playing in European leagues while three of them are in Saudi Arabia and Japan.

For India, four vital players -- defender Anwar Ali, attacking midfielder Sahal Abdul Samad, defensive midfielder Jeakson Singh and winger Ashique Kuruniyan -- were sidelined by injuries, but India entered the competition with the strongest team available. The requirement for goals largely relies on Sunil Chhetri, who appears to be improving with age.

Still, it will be difficult for him and his teammates to get past Australia's goalkeeper, Mathew Ryan, an accomplished veteran who captained the team and was a member of the squad that qualified for all three of the previous World Cups in addition to winning the Asian Cup in 2015.

India vs Australia Predicted Lineup

India: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (GK); Akash Mishra, Sandesh Jhingan, Rahul Bheke, Nikhil Poojary; Anirudh Thapa, Suresh Singh; Lallianzuala Chhangte, Rahul KP, Naorem Mahesh Singh; Sunil Chhetri

Australia: Matt Ryan (GK); Nathaniel Atkinson, Harry Souttar, Cameron Burgess, Jordan Bos; Riley McGree, Aiden O'Neill, Jackson Irvine, Craig Goodwin; Mitchell Duke, Martin Boyle

India vs Australia: Live Streaming and Telecast
Live Streaming: Jio Cinema (India), Paramount+ (Australia)
Telecast: Sports18 (India)