The meet has now been reduced to a three-team group featuring India, hosts China and the UAE.<\/p>
India will now play their opening fixture of the tournament against China PR on September 9, in Dalian Suoyuwan Stadium here.<\/p>
Head coach Clifford Miranda maintained that his team\u2019s focus remained the same despite the change in schedule.<\/p>
\"Nothing changes for us; we have to do the same things that we would have done with the Maldives. We still have to do our best and play to our maximum potential,\" Miranda was quoted as saying by the AIFF in its website.<\/p>
Looking at the positive side of things, coach Miranda was pleased with getting a couple of extra days of training in China but also recognised the drawback of not getting to play a game before facing the hosts.<\/p>
He said, \"The good part is that we get a few days of training together as a complete team. Also, the boys will get time to rest and recover, both physically and mentally, after an extremely long and tiring journey to China.<\/p>
\"Playing against the Maldives would\u2019ve provided us a good opportunity to find our rhythm before facing China and UAE. Let\u2019s face it, among the three, the Maldives were the least dangerous opponents and would\u2019ve been a good starting point for the team to prepare for the other two.\"<\/p>
Miranda said the main objective remains the same despite Maldives\u2019 withdrawal. \"The group probably gets a little tougher but we had to play China and UAE anyway. So, our overall objective is still the same. We will give our best to try and qualify for the U23 Asian Cup.\"<\/p>", "image": "https:\/\/img.cricketnmore.com\/uploads\/2023\/09\/u23-asian-cup-qualifiers-indias-opening-match-cancelled-as-maldives-withdraw-late.png", "alt_img": "U23 Asian Cup qualifiers: India\u2019s opening match cancelled as Maldives withdraw late", "alt_title": "U23 Asian Cup qualifiers: Maldives withdraw, India\u2019s opening tie cancelled ", "image1": null, "video": null, "seo_title": "U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers: India\u2019s Opening Match Cancelled As Maldives Withdraw Late On Cricketnmore", "seo_desc": "U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers: India\u2019s Opening Match Cancelled As Maldives Withdraw Late, AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers: India\u2019s opening encounter in the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers, Group G, which was scheduled.", "seo_keywords": "AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers, The Maldives, China PR, Dalian Suoyuwan Stadium, Clifford Miranda, U23 Asian Cup", "tag": "", "tagging": " The Maldives, China PR, Dalian Suoyuwan Stadium, Clifford Miranda, U23 Asian Cup", "status": "1", "img_rpt": "0", "google": "1", "standout": "0", "edapps": "0", "pulse": "0", "no_index": "0", "feed": "0", "fixture": null, "slug": "u23-asian-cup-qualifiers-indias-opening-match-cancelled-as-maldives-withdraw-late", "user_id": "0", "read_count": "0", "ians_date": null, "ians_time": null, "server_time": null, "trash": "0", "view_count": "967", "page_break": "0", "instant_articles": "1", "auto_link": "0", "created": "2023-09-06 11:08:02", "updated": "2023-09-06 11:08:02", "img_from": "Image Source: IANS", "img_source": null, "schedule_publish": null, "news_keywords": "AFC U23 Asian Cup Qualifiers, The Maldives, China PR, Dalian Suoyuwan Stadium, Clifford Miranda, U23 Asian Cup", "livescore_text": null, "livescore_link": null, "btn_text": null, "resend_feed": "1", "google_feed": "1", "read_more": "0", "posted_by": "23", "jio_date": "2023-09-06 11:08:02", "scheduled": "0", "news_now": "0", "breaking_news": "0", "google_date": null, "featured": "0", "sports_name": "football", "cnmid": "788230", "link": "https:\/\/www.cricketnmore.com\/sports-news\/u23-asian-cup-qualifiers-indias-opening-match-cancelled-as-maldives-withdraw-late-8267" }