India Suffer 1-6 Defeat to Uruguay Despite Anirudh Thapa’s Consolation Goal

India suffered a heavy 1-6 defeat against two-time FIFA World Cup champions Uruguay in a friendly match at Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium on Tuesday. Ranked 138th in the world, India faced a Uruguay side ranked 20th and gave a competitive display in the opening half. Darwin Núñez converted a penalty in the 12th minute to put Uruguay ahead, but Anirudh Thapa stunned the visitors with an equaliser in the 22nd minute. Uruguay regained the lead through Maximiliano Araújo in the 28th minute and went into half-time with a 2-1 advantage.

India struggled to contain Uruguay after the break as the South American side stepped up the pressure. Rodrigo Zalazar made it 3-1 in the 53rd minute, while Araújo scored his second goal in the 59th minute. Sanabria added another in the 71st minute before Agüir completed the scoring in the 86th minute. Although India were beaten by a five-goal margin, scoring against a highly ranked Uruguay side provided a positive moment. However, like the Brazil game four days earlier, the match drew a disappointing response from Kolkata football fans, with a significant number of tickets remaining unsold.