Key Points

While Chandigarh handed a 5-0 drubbing to Pondicherry to go top of the table, Telangana and Uttarakhand played out a goalless draw. A total of 35 teams, split into eight groups, are competing in the tournament. Delhi are the champions of the inaugural edition in 2024, also held in Narainpur. All matches are streamed live on the Indian Football YouTube Channel.

Chandigarh 5 (Manveer Singh 15', 28', Sahil 39', 43', 64') beat Pondicherry 0.

Chandigarh put on a dominant display, effectively finishing the contest by racing to a four-goal lead at half-time. Manveer Singh scored the tournament's first goal - taking advantage of a loose ball to tap in from close range in the 15th minute.

He added another goal, a right-footed strike into the bottom corner, in the 28th minute. Sahil scored a hat-trick with goals in the 39th, 43rd and 64th minutes - beating the goalkeeper one-on-one before a couple of point-blank conversions.

Chances were few and far between in the clash between Telangana and Uttarakhand. Both sides defended well from start to finish and ultimately hung on for clean sheets. With only one team set to progress to the quarter-finals, there will be little margin for error in the remaining four matches of the group. Telangana 0 drew with Uttarakhand 0.

A total of 36 teams were split into eight groups (four groups with five teams each and four groups with four teams each). All the quarter-finalists of the 2024 tournament - Delhi, Karnataka, Manipur, Mizoram, West Bengal, Telangana, Kerala and Assam - were placed in Pot 1, while the remaining 28 participants were placed in Pot 2 before the draw. The eight group winners will progress to the quarter-finals.

- ANI