Chhetri, Indian football's torchbearer for the last 10 years, equaled Lionel Messi when he scored the team's opener -- and his 80th international goal against Nepal in the final.
Seven-time champions India will start title favourites when they take on first-time finalists Nepal in the summit clash of the SAFF Championships.
India defeated Maldives 3-1 in its final league engagement to make the summit clash with an unbeaten run.
India have so far scored two goals in the ongoing SAFF Championships and both came through 37-year-old Chhetri, who equalled legendary Pele with his 77th strike in the match against Nepal.
An 82nd-minute strike by Sunil Chhetri handed India a 1-0 win over Nepal in the SAFF Championship 2021 Group Stage, at the National Stadium.
The seven-time champions paid the price of not creating enough chances and wasting those they got against a Sri Lankan side 98 places below them in the FIFA rankings.
The Indians go into Thursday's game on the back of a disappointing stalemate with Bangladesh, against whom they should have won considering that they dominated majority of the proceedings
The 37-year-old Chhetri, playing in his 121st match for India, struck in the 27th minute to place himself just a goal shy of legendary Brazillian Pele (77 goals from 92 matches).
India have won the tournament seven times out of the 12 editions but by the own admission of their talismanic captain Sunil Chhetri.
After a 1-1 draw in the first friendly, India notched up 2-1 win in the second game against Nepal on Sunday.
It was Choudhary who put India ahead in the 62nd minute while Chhetri (80th) doubled the lead of the visitors.
Worse, Indian football team is not at all happy with the training facilities provided by the host country.
The Blue Tigers haven’t been able to get a practice field since their first match on September 2.
Anjan Bista scored for Nepal in the 36th minute before Thapa netted one for the visiting side at the Dashrath Stadium.
India will play two friendlies against Nepal on September 2 and 5.
India are scheduled to play Nepal on September 2 and September 5 in two away games.
While the women's hockey team narrowly missed out on a podium spot in the bronze medal match, they won unanimous plaudits with a best-ever semi-final finish.
Jhingan will become the first India international footballer to play in the Croatian top-tier league Prva HNL after completing a move from ATK Mohun Bagan to HNK Sibenik.
Maymol, who took over as head coach in 2017 after a stint as the assistant coach, led the team to a number of international events.
This was proposed by the AIFF's technical committee, headed by former India international Shyam Thapa.
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