India's Nandhakumar in action against Mauritius© Twitter
Manolo Marquez's stint as Indian football team's head coach began with a goalless draw against lower-ranked Mauritius in the Intercontinental Cup opener Hyderabad on Tuesday. India, ranked 124th in the FIFA chart, enjoyed possession early on even as the tourists started the game on a lively note at the GMC Balayogi Athletic Stadium. The failure to make the third round of 2026 World Cup Qualifiers still fresh in memory, which led to the unceremonious exit of former coach Igor Stimac, India, placed as many as 55 spots above 174th-ranked Mauritius, failed to find the back of the net and once again left their fans disappointed.
The Indian defence was tested as early as the eighth minute when Jeremy Villeneuve of Mauritius won a set-piece and unleashed the ball into the box, but Jeakson Singh was there to make the clearance.
Soon, there was another opening for the visitors but Jay Shah cleared the ball to safety.
With their attacking brand of football, Mauritius looked threatening and were creating more opportunities than the home team.
In the 34th minute, striker Manvir Singh was sent through on goal by Anirudh Thapa and he challenged the Mauritius goalkeeper Kevin Obrian with his left-footed strike, but the custodian was up to the task and pulled off an important save.
In between, there was also a fine cross by Lallianzuala Chhangte from the right wing, but Thapa could not come up with an accurate header.
At the other end, Mauritius came close to scoring what would have been a brilliant goal but the shot missed the target by a whisker.
India showed a lot more urgency and enterprise in the second half, looking to create chances and put the visitors under pressure.
Right after resumption, there was Chhangte running down the right flank and sending the ball inside the visitors' box, but an alert Obrian was there to thwart the attempt.
In the 51st minute, Sahal Abdul Samad, who was brought in place of Thapa, ran down the flank but Mauritius had defenders in numbers to deny India.
Both teams continued to create the occasional chances but lacked the finishing touches, with Mauritius often looking the better team on display.