BEIJING, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Syria made it five wins out of five matches after it edged the Philippines 1-0 on Tuesday in Group A of the Asian zone qualifier for the FIFA World Cup 2022.
At the Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum Stadium in Dubai, Syria held a spirited Philippine side at bay by a first-half strike from Ward Al-Salama.
The Philippines remains third in the group with seven points, but the Maldives is close on its heels after a 3-1 win over Guam at the National Football Stadium in Male gave them six points.
Syria top the group with 15 points while China, which went down 2-1 to Syria, are second with seven points from four matches.
Jordan thrashed Chinese Taipei 5-0 in Amman to go level on points with Kuwait who had overcome Nepal 1-0 in Group B in Thimphu, Bhutan.
Both sides now have 10 points from five matches. Australia top the group with 12 points from four wins so far.
Iraq and Bahrain played out a goalless draw in what was a top of the table clash in Group C at the Amma International Stadium in Jordan. The result means that Iraq are still in pole position in the pool with 11 points while Bahrain trail them by two points.
Iran are sitting in third with six points and a match in hand. Meanwhile, Hong Kong of China closed down the gap on Team Melli with a 2-0 win over Cambodia at home on Tuesday.
Uzbekistan return to the top of Group D with a 2-0 win over Palestine in Tashkent. Eldor Shomurodov scored for the Uzbeks for the fourth match running and his brace was the difference between the two sides as Vadim Abramov's made it nine points from five matches.
Saudi Arabia, who inflicted a late defeat on Uzbekistan last week, are second with eight points from four matches. Meanwhile, Singapore climbed from the bottom to third in the group with a 2-1 win over Yemen in Muharraq.
In Group E, Qatar had to wait until a 77th-minute penalty from Akram Afif to overcome Afghanistan, while Muhsen Al-Ghassani found the winner for Oman against India in Muscat in the 33rd minute.
2022 World Cup hosts Qatar have 13 points after five matches while Oman are one point behind at second. Afghanistan are a distant third with four points while India are fourth with three.
Myanmar recorded its second successive victory under returning head coach Antoine Hey by defeating Mongolia 1-0 in Mandalay. In doing so, Myanmar moved one point behind both Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan who played out a 1-1 draw in the other Group F fixture of Tuesday.
Japan top the group with 12 points while Mongolia are bottom with three points. Enditem
