Captain Sunil Chhetri found the target yet again as India beat a spirited Nepal 2-0 in their second group match to book a berth in the SAFF Championship semifinals in Bengaluru on Saturday.
Chhetri (61st minute) scored his fourth goal of the tournament before Mahesh Singh (70th) struck to notch up the home side's second consecutive win. India had beaten Pakistan 4-0 in their opening match on Wednesday with Chhetri scoring a hat-trick.
With six points from two wins, India qualified for the semifinals from Group A along with Kuwait who have the same points as the hosts after defeating Pakistan earlier on Saturday 4-0.
India play Kuwait on June 27 to decide the group winner while Nepal and Pakistan are out of the reckoning for a semifinal spot as they lost two matches each.
Chhetri (91 goals from 139 matches) had already become the second most prolific scorer among Asians -- after Ali Daei (109 from 148 matches) of Iran -- and third among active players in the world. He is the most prolific goal-getter among active Asian players.