<p>A persistent Nepal ended their SAFF Championship campaign on a bright note, beating Pakistan 1-0 in a Group A match here on Tuesday.</p>.<p>Nepal's Aashish Chaudhary (80th minute) broke the deadlock and ensured that Pakistan went back home winless. Nepal and Pakistan were already out of contention for a semifinal berth after losing their earlier matches.</p>.<p>The first half was rather tepid with both the teams struggling a bit to find their range and rhythm, although Nepal enjoyed superior possession.</p>.<p>The pace picked up in the second half as Nepal and Pakistan went for the jugular. The first clear chance came Nepal's way as a cross from the right wing found Nawayug Shrestha unmarked but his header sailed over the bar.</p>.<p>Nepal intensified their sorties and came close to scoring a goal in the 60th minute. Manish Dangi just had to slot the ball past Yousuf Ijaz Butt but a weak shot was parried away by the Pakistan goalkeeper.</p>.<p>Eight minutes later, Shrestha took a lovely free-kick that curled into the Pakistan goal but the woodwork denied the Nepal midfielder.</p>.<p>Just as it appeared that the match was heading for a goalless draw, Sanish Shrestha found Aashish inside the box with a through pass. Aashish cleverly pushed the ball under a diving Yousuf to give Nepal a 1-0 lead.</p>.<p>Nepal had a few more chances to double the lead after Pakistan opted for a downright attacking game to find the equaliser. However, both the teams were unsuccessful in their respective ventures.</p>
<p>A persistent Nepal ended their SAFF Championship campaign on a bright note, beating Pakistan 1-0 in a Group A match here on Tuesday.</p>.<p>Nepal's Aashish Chaudhary (80th minute) broke the deadlock and ensured that Pakistan went back home winless. Nepal and Pakistan were already out of contention for a semifinal berth after losing their earlier matches.</p>.<p>The first half was rather tepid with both the teams struggling a bit to find their range and rhythm, although Nepal enjoyed superior possession.</p>.<p>The pace picked up in the second half as Nepal and Pakistan went for the jugular. The first clear chance came Nepal's way as a cross from the right wing found Nawayug Shrestha unmarked but his header sailed over the bar.</p>.<p>Nepal intensified their sorties and came close to scoring a goal in the 60th minute. Manish Dangi just had to slot the ball past Yousuf Ijaz Butt but a weak shot was parried away by the Pakistan goalkeeper.</p>.<p>Eight minutes later, Shrestha took a lovely free-kick that curled into the Pakistan goal but the woodwork denied the Nepal midfielder.</p>.<p>Just as it appeared that the match was heading for a goalless draw, Sanish Shrestha found Aashish inside the box with a through pass. Aashish cleverly pushed the ball under a diving Yousuf to give Nepal a 1-0 lead.</p>.<p>Nepal had a few more chances to double the lead after Pakistan opted for a downright attacking game to find the equaliser. However, both the teams were unsuccessful in their respective ventures.</p>