India Beat Pakistan 3-2 in SAFF Opener as Bhat Scores Twice in First Half

India beat Pakistan 3-2 in their opening Group B match at the SAFF Championship 2026 at the National Stadium in Dhaka on Thursday, November 5, 2026. The defending champions scored all three of their goals in the first half and held on after Pakistan scored twice in stoppage time.

Suhail Ahmad Bhat put India ahead early. The 21-year-old Mohun Bagan striker scored in the 13th minute and again in the 19th minute. His second goal came from a through ball by Suryavanshi, the Daily Jagran match report said.

Manglenthang Kipgen of Punjab FC scored India's third goal before half time. Pakistan then had a chance to get back into the match, but Shayak Dost missed a penalty in the 35th minute. India led 3-0 at half time.

Sportradar's match summary also records the final score as Pakistan 2, India 3, with India scoring three goals in the first half and Pakistan scoring two in the second half.

Two late goals in Dhaka

For most of the second half the score stayed at 3-0. Pakistan finally scored in stoppage time. Najeeb Ullah scored in the 90+1 minute and captain Alamgir Ghazi scored in the 90+4 minute.

That cut India's lead to one goal in the last moments of the match. India held on for the 3-2 win and took three points from their first match of the tournament.

No verified post-match quote was reported in the sources for this match, and none is added here.

Group B and what comes next

India are the defending champions. They sit in Group B with Pakistan and Maldives. All matches in the tournament are at the National Stadium in Dhaka, and the tournament runs from November 5 to November 17, 2026.

India next play Maldives on November 11, 2026. Naushad Moosa is India's coach for the tournament.

The result gives India the start they needed in a short group. Three teams in Group B means one win already carries weight, and India's goal difference stayed positive even after the two late Pakistan goals. Pakistan leave their opener with no points, despite the stoppage-time fightback, and with a missed penalty at 3-0 down that would have changed the second half.

One detail in the reports does not line up. Jagran's full match report and the SportsCafe results feed differ by one minute on the time of Kipgen's goal, so this report records that goal only as a first-half goal before half time, which both reports support.