The Indian women’s football team beat higher-ranked Chinese Taipei 1-0 in an international friendly match on Wednesday to end their four-match exposure tour on a winning note in Bahrain. This was their third victory in four friendly matches under new head coach Thomas Dennerby.

Renu scored the all-important goal in the third minute and the Indians kept their opponents at bay till the end. Chinese Taipei are ranked 40th in the Fifa chart while the Indians are placed at 57th.

Dennerby’s team had entered the match after a 5-0 win over Bahrain in their previous outing on Sunday.

Five minutes after the first goal, Renu could have doubled the lead, but she was ruled offside before she could make an effective contact with the cross by Dalima Chhibber.

Chinese Taipei midfielder Ting Chi almost levelled the score, only to be denied by Aditi Chauhan under the woodwork in the 17th minute. Her compatriot Su Yu-Hsuan was also denied by the Indian goalkeeper on the cusp of the half-hour mark.

Nine minutes after the resumption, Indumathi struck the target, but she was ruled offside, and the score remained unchanged. The prolific midfielder Lee Hsiu-Chin tried her luck from close range before the hour-mark, but Aditi stood tall to deny her confidently.

Chen Yen-Ping had the final effort for Chinese Taipei in the final minute of the regulation time but her effort landed safely into Aditi’s gloves.

Besides the positive result against 85th-ranked Bahrain, India had beaten UAE 4-1 and lost to 77th-ranked Tunisia 0-1 in Dubai in international friendly matches earlier this month.

The friendly matches were a part of preparations for the AFC Asian Cup, which will be hosted by India in January-February.

Before the victory against 100th ranked UAE on October 2, the Indians were winless in the five previous matches this year, though all of them were against higher-ranked European sides.

Watch highlights of the match below: