3 times Gurpreet Singh Sandhu proved to be Indian national team’s hero

As India paraded away to the SAFF Championship 2023 title earlier in the week, the headlines belonged to a certain Gurpreet Singh Sandhu who led them to glory with two special performances in the semi-final and the final.

The 31-year-old has been providing the most superhuman performances in patches for the Blue Tigers since breaking into the first team. Against Lebanon, in the penultimate knockout stage of the SAFF competition, Gurpreet made two stunning stops during the regulation time before denying the opposition star player Hassan Maatouk during the penalty shootouts.

In the final, against Kuwait, a much more resilient outfit, the Bengaluru FC custodian had more stops to make. But his greatness ultimately shone in the shootouts once again, when he managed to punch away Khaled Haijah's penalty during the sudden death.

But Gurpreet Singh Sandhu's career has had plenty more highs to cherish, hence, let's look at three occasions when he turned hero for the Indian national team:

---

#3 India 0-1 Qatar [FIFA World Cup 2022 and AFC Asian Cup 2023 joint Qualifiers]

It's rare to see a goalkeeper garner all the plaudits despite his team ending up on the losing side. But on the fateful night of June 3, 2021, at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu scripted one of the most memorable performances of his career.

The Blue Tigers went a man down right after the opening quarter of the match. Up against the Qataris, who were set to host the 2022 World Cup and developed into absolute heavyweights, everyone expected India to face a relentless battering that night. Abdel Aziz opened the scoring for the opposition in the 33rd minute and the writing of an eventual humiliation seemed to be on the cards.

The Indian custodian stood firm between sticks in the face of a barrage of opportune strikes from the Middle Eastern side and let nothing past him for the rest of 90 minutes. As the minutes ticked away, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu's numbers became growingly stellar as he ended the night with nine saves, with six of them coming from inside the box.

---

#2 Qatar 0-0 India [FIFA World Cup 2022 and AFC Asian Cup 2023 joint Qualifiers]

There are very few results in recent history that Indian fans can look back at with pride, but the draw against Qatar in September 2019 is definitely at the top of the list. The Blue Tigers were coming fresh off a 1-2 defeat against Oman and needed a miraculous result to boost their chances in the Qualifiers.

As established earlier, the Maroons were leaps and bounds ahead of India in terms of quality and showcased the same during the night. In the absence of Sunil Chhetri in the attacking lineup, India's blunt attack was overwhelmed and all the action unfolded in their own half. But there was one man, who denied to let the opposition or the situation get the better of him.

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was an impregnable wall on the day, making 11 saves to keep a clean sheet for India against the Middle Eastern heavyweights. The whole of the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, in Doha, and the opposition lauded the Indian numero uno for his efforts that night.

---

#1 China 0-0 India [International friendly, 2018]

In preparation for their AFC Asian Cup 2019 campaign, India faced China in an International riendly in October 2018. Then managed by World Cup winner Marcelo Lippi, the Chinese contingent was expected to be a stern test for Stephen Constantine's men.

Right from the first whistle, the East Asian heavyweights dominated the proceedings, carving out several gilt-edge opportunities. In all fairness, the Blue Tigers had no right that night to come away a draw, more so with a clean sheet.

But Gurpreet Singh Sandhu had made a career out of defying odds and that night his performance could put every superlatives to shame. Putting on his Superman cape, the Punjab-born goalkeeper thwarted away every threat to the Indian goal, at times even while relying on a stroke of luck.

It was a monumental result for India, but furthermore for Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, who showed the country that very day that the zone between the two sticks would be his to rule for a while.