Charismatic captain Sunil Chhetri played the role of saviour to perfection once again as he scored the lone goal in India’s 1-0 win over lower-ranked Vanuatu in the Intercontinental Cup here today.

Chhetri struck in the 81st minute to settle the nerves of the Indians and send the home side into the final. India had earlier beaten Mongolia 2-0 in their opening match on Friday.

The 38-year-old Chhetri scored his 86th goal for India in his 135th international match. With six points from two wins, India are currently on top of the table. They play Lebanon on Thursday in their last round-robin league match.

World No. 101 India were clearly the better side in the first half with 62 per cent ball possession and at least a dozen attempts on goal but most of them were off target. Vanuatu, ranked 164th in the world, did not have a single shot on target in the first half.