The early indications are that Group A will go down to the wire with Tajikistan and Philippines tied on four points, with Timor-Leste one adrift.

Tajikistan looked set to remain perfect after fighting back to lead 2-1 against the Philippines but the Southeast Asian side refused to give up and were rewarded by a 79th minute equaliser.

Timor-Leste - having suffered defeat against Tajikistan in their opening match - pulled themselves back into the race with a 1-0 defeat of Maldives.

October's double headers will see Tajikistan playing Maldives while Timor-Leste and Philippines will square off. 

Another group which sees all four teams still very much in the running with Lebanon - on four points - just one ahead of Brunei Darussalam with Yemen on two and Bhutan with one.

Lebanon - having opened their campaign with a resounding 5-0 win against Brunei Darussalam - had to settle for a goalless draw with Yemen on Tuesday.

Brunei Darussalam got themselves back into contention with a 2-1 defeat of Bhutan.

Lebanon and Bhutan will square off twice in October with Brunei Darussalam going head to head with Yemen.

Singapore and Hong Kong, China pulled away at the top with crucial wins on Matchday Two.

The sides played to a goalless draw when they met in March but were in fine form on Tuesday with Singapore edging Bangladesh 2-1 while Hong Kong, China defeated India 1-0.

Singapore will look to inflict more pain on India when they meet in October while Hong Kong, China will aim for a maximum six points from their meetings with Bangladesh.

Turkmenistan registered a statement win as they defeated Thailand 3-1 to open a three-point lead in Group D.

It was an impressive performance from the Central Asian side and they will be hard to stop in their remaining matches.

The defeat was a body blow for Thailand, with Sri Lanka drawing level with them on three points with a 3-1 win against Sri Lanka.

Thailand will need maximum points from their two meetings with Chinese Taipei in October while Turkmenistan will fancy their chances of beating Sri Lanka home and away.

Syria and Myanmar stayed perfect with wins on Tuesday but something has to give when they meet in the October fixtures.

Syria lead the standings on goal difference but know that Myanmar will be a different challenge from Afghanistan and Pakistan, who they defeated in their opening two matches.

Myanmar will be equally determined to not slip up, setting the stage for titanic encounters between the two.

Pakistan and Afghanistan will face off with both needing wins to stay in the running.