Kerala Blasters were held to their fourth successive draw after playing out a 1-1 draw against FC Pune City in their Hero Indian Super League (ISL) tie in Pune on Friday, 2 November.
Marko Stankovic’s classy 13th-minute strike put Pune City up and running, only for Nikola Krcmarevic to pull Kerala Blasters level after 62 minutes.
The result pulled Pune City, still without a win, off the bottom of the table temporarily, while Kerala Blasters have moved up to fifth spot with seven points from five games.
The visitors got off to an energetic start, with CK Vineeth testing Pune custodian Kamaljit Singh in the third minute.
Kerala continued to attack Kamaljit's goal with shots, but the goalkeeper denied Vineeth and Slavisla Stojanovic in a space of minutes.
Against the run of play, Pune drew first blood in the 13th minute through a stunning strike from Stankovic. The Austrian gained possession in midfield before finding the top corner from about 30 yards with a terrific left-footer.
The goal infused some confidence into Pune, who should have doubled their lead when Emiliano Alfaro missed a free header from Stankovic's free-kick.
Pradyum Reddy's side began to sit back, however, and play on the counter.
Alfaro and Marcelinho did pose a threat on the break, but Kerala were not without opportunities themselves.
Sahal Abdul Samad imposed himself in midfield while Nikola Krcmarevic almost bundled the ball home following a scramble.
Kerala continued to attack Pune City in the second-half but it was the hosts, who were handed a glorious chance to double their lead.
Pune were awarded a penalty when Alfaro was brought inside the box by Krcmarevic. But the Uruguayan – who had missed a penalty against FC Goa in the previous game –sent his effort crashing against the bar, much to Kerala's relief.
Six minutes later, Pune were made to pay for that miss when Krcmarevic lashed a loose ball from a half-cleared corner home from inside the box.
Pune showed a bit more urgency in their bid to find a winner while Kerala also endeavoured to find one, but there was to be no winning goal as both teams shared the spoils.
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