Afghanistan looked dangerous early on, Yasin Popel capitalising on Salem Al Shloul’s poor kick-out but Omar Al Khatib was quick to divert the shot away in the 11th minute.

Then Nawid Mahbobi showed good pace to break through on the left flank and his cutback looked destined to be swept home by Arash Ahmadi but Ali Al Nueimi produced an outstanding tackle.

Having survived the hairy moments, Jordan eventually worked their way to the opening goal, Mohannad Mahmoud with a clever turn in the box to set up Adeeb Ramadan for the finish in the 41st minute.

Afghanistan worked hard in search of the equaliser and were unlucky not to be level on 54 minutes after Mohammad Zarif beat Iyad Al Amawi to the ball to cut back for Farzad Tajik who steered it wide.

Despite having spent large parts of the second half defending, Jordan went close to a second when Qais Al Shwashri’s curler was pushed away by Niamatullah Rahmani in the 88th minute with Ibrahim Jaber’s side easing to an opening win.

Bahrain seized the early advantage, taking the lead in the sixth minute thanks to the pace of Rashed Al Jazzaf on the right with Mahran heading in the opener.

Slowly but surely, Tajikistan fought their way back into the game with their intricate play causing mayhem in Bahrain’s box, allowing Azizbek Murotov to equalise in the 14th minute.

Just when it looked like the tie would head into the break on level terms, Bahrain reclaimed the lead in the 44th minute when Mahran knocked home Abdulrahman Bassam’s inswinging corner delivery.

Better finishing would have given Bahrain more breathing room after Bassam had a close range effort saved while Mahran powered a header against the bar in the second half.

The match was then halted in the 84th minute due to a floodlight issue, resuming after a lengthy break with Bahrain going further ahead when Mahran pounced on a rebound in the 89th minute.

An own goal from Khalid Ahmed gave Tajikistan a flicker of hope but the Central Asian side ran out of time as the final whistle was blown.