Khaled hajiah

Kuwait City, Nov 15 ( IANS) The FIFA World Cup is the greatest stage in the world of football. In theory, the stage is set once every four years. Practically, the hustle to make it there carries on every single day. It is a rigorous process, and India's 10th quest to qualify for the World Cup gets underway 30 months before the 2026 edition kicks off in the USA, Mexico, and Canada.

The 60,000-capacity Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium will be the stage where the dreams of a billion and a half will start to take flight. The Blue Tigers' first opponents are 136-ranked Kuwait, familiar faces from this summer's SAFF Championship. It was just over four months ago when Gurpreet Singh Sandhu's outstretched left glove pushed out Kuwait captain Khaled Hajiah's penalty to win the final in Bengaluru.