New Delhi: The Indian football team dropped two places to 103 in the FIFA World Rankings released on Thursday.
India slipped two places after their poor show at the recently concluded Intercontinental Cup in Ahmedabad.
The national football team lost two matches and drew one in the Intercontinental Cup earlier this month in Ahmedabad. It lost 2-4 to Tajikistan and 2-5 against eventual winners DPR Korea before playing out a 1-1 draw against Syria.
The dismal performance forced India to lose five FIFA points and drop two places in the latest rankings.
The Indian team now lies at 18th among Asian countries. Iran (23rd) is at the top among Asian countries, followed by Japan (33), Korea (37), Australia (46) and Qatar (62).
In April, India had jumped to 101. Before that, the Blue Tigers had dropped six spots to 103 in the February edition after ending last year on 97.
India have been clubbed in Group E alongside Bangladesh, Oman, Afghanistan and hosts in the second round of Asian qualifiers for 2022 FIFA World Cup to be held in Qatar.
The matches in the second round will be played from September 5 to June 9, 2020. The group winners and four best runners-up (12 teams in total) will advance to the third round of Asian World Cup qualifiers.
At the top of the rankings, Belgium continue to rule the roost, followed by Copa America champion Brazil and 2018 World Cup winners France.