Shillong, Mar 19 (PTI) The talismanic Sunil Chhetri scored on his international comeback to lead India to a commanding 3-0 victory over Maldives in a football friendly here on Wednesday, helping the home side snap their 12-match winless streak that started in November 2023. Rahul Bheke gave India the lead in the 35th minute before Liston Colaco made it 2-0 in the 66th minute. Also Read | Who is Hamza Choudhury? Here’s All You Need to Know About Former Leicester City Footballer Who Will Play For Bangladesh National Football Team Against India. The 40-year-old Chhetri, who returned to the national team after hanging his boots in May last year, made it a memorable day as he scored India's third with a glancing header in the 77th minute for his 95th international goal. Captain Chhetri, who was denied by the Maldives goalkeeper in the 47th minute, was substituted in the 82nd minute. Also Read | IPL 2025: Five ‘Unsold’ Cricketers in the Mega Auction Who Can Be Called in As Replacement Players During Indian Premier League Season 18. This was India's first win in 16 months and also first under Manolo Marquez who was made the head coach in July last year. India's last win was against Kuwait (1-0) in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying round match in Kuwait City on November 16, 2023. Before Wednesday, India under Marquez lost once and drew thrice. The match served as a dress rehearsal for the all-important AFC Asian Cup qualifier against Bangladesh at the same venue on March 25. Chhetri came out of his international retirement earlier this month to help the team successfully navigate the qualifiers for the AFC Asian Cup, starting with the March 25 clash. Maldives are ranked 162 in the world, 36 places below India (126). This is also Shillong's first international match. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)