Both sides were already out of contention for the tournament — scheduled in Saudi Arabia next year — with the SAR eliminated following their 2-1 loss to Singapore last November.
The Group C finale in Kochi saw the hosts strike first through Ryan Williams, who scored in the fourth minute with a close-range finish through a cross from Manvir Singh.
India doubled their advantage in the 50th minute, when Akash Mishra slammed home the ball at the near post after a goalmouth scramble from a throw-in.
Everton Camargo pulled a goal back for the SAR 15 minutes later, scoring from the edge of the box after a well-placed assist from Barak Braunshtain.
But it was too little, too late for Hong Kong, who ended their Asian Cup qualifying campaign with eight points. Singapore earlier defeated Bangladesh 1-0 to finish atop the group on 14 points, earning a ticket to Saudi Arabia.
SAR coach Roberto Losada, in his first international fixture since taking charge last December, said he was pleased with his squad’s performance.
“Disappointed for [the loss] obviously. When you play these kinds of matches, you always want to win,” he told reporters after the match.
“But I’m satisfied with some parts of the game, very satisfied with some players in this high-level match. It’s a mixed feeling… for our fans that came out here and [we didn’t] get them the win.
“We have some good things, some moments in the game that we did really well and mostly some young talents that are coming up.”
Edited by Raymond Yeung
