It’s not often that one comes across a score line of 6-0 in a soccer match and it is even more rare if that reads in favour of India. For once the score line justified the way Bob Houghton’s boys performed in the inaugural match of the 13th ONGC Nehru Cup against a young Cambodian squad at the Dr Ambedkar Stadium in the Capital today.Riding on a brace by Steven Dias and marksman Sunil Chhetri, coupled with first-half strikes from skipper Bhaichung Bhutia and NP Pradeep, India justified their billing as favourites in the five-nation tournament that has rediscovered itself after a decade-long hiatus.The hosts made their intentions clear from the word go as mid-field dynamo NP Pradeep set up skipper Bhutia in the first few seconds of the play but Bhutia’s shot was blocked by an alert Cambodian custodian Oum Veasna. The counter-attack by the young rivals forced back-to-back corners but any damage was avoided by India’s four-pack defence line of Surkumar Singh, Mahesh Gawli, Dipak Mondal and NS Manju.The sudden onslaught from the nippy Cambodians forced India to go on the defensive for a while, but that did not stop Houghton’s chief mid-field architect NP Pradeep to create opportunities for the striker duo of Bhutia and Chhetri.It was one such move in the midfield that created an opening for Pradeep to deliver the opening salvo in the 17th minute with a vicious right-footer that screamed into the bottom left hand corner giving Cambodian custodian Oum Veasna no chance.Then on, the game virtually was confined to the Cambodian half and Pradeep remained a bugbear for the rival defence line. He created another opportunity when he was brought down just outside the box in the 28th minute. The spot kick by veteran Renedy Singh just kissed the crossbar and flew over.Minutes later, the Kerala player came within a whisker to double the Indian lead but his fine touch in front of the post missed the side bar by micro-centimeters. A goalmouth ruckus minutes before the half time whistle proved unfortunate for Pradeep as he collided with rival defender Om Thavrak and had to be taken off the ground.He tried making a comeback but had to be finally substituted by Mehrajuddin Wadoo in the injury time. Meanwhile an opportunistic lob by Surkumar set up Bhutia for a one-on-one with Cambodian custodian Oum Veasna. The Indian skipper was brought down dangerously by Veasna and the ensuing spot-kick was coolly converted by Bhutia to make it 2-0 at the break.India started making raids at the Cambodian post with some incisive play from right-winger Steven Dias who stepped on the gas in the absence Pradeep. With the induction of fresh legs in form Clifford Miranda and Abhishek Yadav in the 70th minute in place of Renedy Singh and Bhutia, the Indian attack looked much more threatening. Clifford Miranda, another Houghton favourite, got into the act straightaway, but his shot was blocked by Oum Veasna only for Steven Dias to find the net. Delhi boy Sunil Chhetri added to the visitors’ woes with clinical finished in the 83rd and 85th minute.First it was a measured chip from outside the box to beat the goalie, who erred in clearing the ball, sending it straight to Chhetri again. Then it was a powerful volley off a Miranda centre from the left.Dias, who was later named Man of the Match, gave a final blow to Cambodia through a long ranger in the 89th minute of the game. Syria and Bangladesh face off in the tournament’s second match tomorrow.
