logo
Indian women's football team to play Uzbekistan in two international friendlies in Bengaluru

Indian women's football team to play Uzbekistan in two international friendlies in Bengaluru

Hans India08-05-2025
New Delhi: India women's national team will play two FIFA Women's International Friendly matches against Uzbekistan in the May/June 2025 International Window.
The two matches against Uzbekistan will be played on May 30 and June 3 at the Padukone-Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence in Bengaluru.
The women's team, coached by Crispin Chettri, are on the preparation path for the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers, having begun their camp in Bengaluru on May 1. India have been drawn in Group B, where they are set to face Mongolia (June 23), Timor-Leste (June 29), Iraq (July 2), and hosts Thailand (July 5), in Chiang Mai.
Thailand will host Group B of the Qualifiers in a centralised single round-robin format. The group winners will qualify for the final tournament, scheduled to be staged across three host cities in Australia from March 1 to 26, 2026.
India, who are at 69th in the FIFA Women's Rankings, have played Uzbekistan, ranked 50th, on 13 occasions. The White Wolves have come out victorious on nine occasions, while the Blue Tigresses have won one match; three matches between the two sides have ended in draws.
FIFA Women's International Friendlies:
May 30: India vs Uzbekistan; Padukone-Dravid CSE
June 3: India vs Uzbekistan; Padukone-Dravid CSE
List of Indian team probables:
Goalkeepers: Payal Basude, Elangbam Panthoi Chanu, Keisham Melody Chanu, Moirangthem Monalisha Devi.
Defenders: Purnima Kumari, Phanjoubam Nirmala Devi, Martina Thokchom, Shubhangi Singh, Sanju, Malati Munda, Toijam Thoibisana Chanu, Sorokhaibam Ranjana Chanu, Ngangbam Sweety Devi, Viksit Bara, Hemam Shilky Devi.
Midfielders: Kiran Pisda, Nongmaithem Ratanbala Devi, Muskan Subba, Lisham Babina Devi, Karthika Angamuthu, Cindy Remruatpuii Colney, Sangita Basfore, Priyadharshini S, Baby Sana, Santosh, Anju Tamang.
Forwards: Mousumi Murmu, Malavika P, Sandhiya Ranganathan, Soumya Guguloth, Sulanjana Raul, Lynda Kom Serto, Rimpa Haldar, Manisha Naik, Renu, Karishma Purushottam Shirvoikar, Sumati Kumari, Manisha Kalyan, Grace Dangmei.
Head coach: Crispin Chettri
Assistant coach: Priya PV
Goalkeeper coach: Dipankar Choudhury
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

From Asian Cup qualification to Chess World Cup, how 2025 has been a dream year for women's sport in India
From Asian Cup qualification to Chess World Cup, how 2025 has been a dream year for women's sport in India

First Post

time13 hours ago

  • First Post

From Asian Cup qualification to Chess World Cup, how 2025 has been a dream year for women's sport in India

From India qualifying for the Women's Asian Cup on merit for the first time ever in football to an all-Indian final at the Women's Chess World Cup and a historic double on English soil in cricket, it has been quite the roller-coaster ride so far this year. read more The year 2025 has been a mixed bag for Indian sport – from the highs of Neeraj Chopra finally breaching the 90 metre mark for the first time in his career to Indian football sinking to new lows with each passing day. The stocks, however, are a lot higher when it comes to women's sport in the country, and the kind of ground-breaking achievements witnessed in the first seven months of the year not only gives hope to the average Indian sports fan, it is doing its bit to inspire a lot more girls across the country into becoming an athlete. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD From India qualifying for the Women's Asian Cup on merit for the first time ever in football to an all-Indian final at the Women's Chess World Cup and a historic double on English soil in cricket, it has been quite the roller-coaster ride so far. The Indian women's football team appears immune to the All India Football Federation's mismanagement that has greatly affected the men's team. The Blue Tigresses, after all, recently that will be held in Australia next year on pure merit – and not on an invitational basis or as the host nation, which was the case in its nine past appearances in the continental tournament. Indian women's team celebrates after historic win against host nation Thailand during the AFC Asian Cup 2026 Qualifier. Image: AIFF Crispin Chhetri's side achieved this monumental feat with a clinical qualifying campaign in Thailand, where India won four out of four to finish top of Group B – beating the host nation 2-1 and scoring a combined 22 goals without conceding one against Mongolia, Iraq and Timor-Leste. With such incredible performances in the qualifying campaign, one can't wait to find out just how far they go in the main event Down Under next year. Divya and Humpy make chess history in Batumi Just as historic from the Indian perspective is the Women's Chess World Cup in Batumi, Georgia, the prestigious event offering three spots for next year's Candidates Tournament. Grandmaster Harika Dronavalli was the only Indian to have made it as far as the quarter-finals in the previous two editions. This year, half of the quarter-finalists hail from the country widely seen as the newest superpower in the world of chess. Of the quartet of Grandmasters Harika, Koneru Humpy, R Vaishali and International Master Divya Deshmukh – two ended up going all the way to the final from the last-8, with Divya and Humpy set to battle it out in the grand finale that gets underway on Saturday. Koneru Humpy set-up an all-Indian final against Divya Deshmukh at the FIDE Women's World Cup after defeating China's Lei Tingjie in the semi-finals. Image credit: FIDE What has made this tournament even more special for Indian chess are some of the incredible results along the way. From Divya stunning two Chinese GMs ranked inside the top-10 (Zhu Jiner and Tan Zhongyi ) to fellow IM Vantika Agrawal pulling off a spectacular victory over former women's world champion Anna Ushenina in the second round. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The incredible result has ensured at least two Indians will be challenging for a shot at the Women's World Championship that is currently in the possession of China's Ju Wenjun. Harmanpreet and Co achieve a first in England And onto the national religion that is cricket, the Women in Blue aren't too far behind either. Nearly a year after their disappointing T20 World Cup campaign that nearly resulted in Harmanpreet Kaur losing captaincy, the Indian women's cricket team has achieved a rare double on English soil – winning the T20I as well as ODI legs of their recently-concluded tour to walk away with both trophies in their possession. After winning the T20I series, India also clinched the ODI series in England. Image: Reuters What was especially impressive was India clinching the T20I series series with a game to spare, their first series win in the format on English soil. And with Harman and Co also triumphing in the 50-over format, they certainly have sent out a warning to all the other teams ahead of the ODI World Cup on home soil later this year. Anahat and Sakshi offer hope for the future Last, but certainly not the least, the future of Indian sport also appears bright following Anahat Singh and Shreyashi Joshi's standout achievements in squash and roller skating respectively. Rising star Anahat, after all, capped off a stellar performance at the World Junior Squash Championships in Cairo, Egypt to win bronze. Shreyasi Joshi of India claimed two gold medals at 2025 Asian Roller Skating Championships. @_skater_sisters Even more historic was Shreyasi winning double gold at the Asian Roller Skating Championships in South Korea – in the Inline Freestyle – Classic Slalom and Battle Slalom categories respectively. The year is far from over, and there's plenty of sporting action left to be witnessed. And the manner in which the ladies have been summiting one peak after another certainly gives the country hope of continued success in the near future. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD

Newcastle United legend Nolberto Solano named as Pakistan coach
Newcastle United legend Nolberto Solano named as Pakistan coach

The Hindu

time4 days ago

  • The Hindu

Newcastle United legend Nolberto Solano named as Pakistan coach

Newcastle United legend Nolberto Solano has been appointed as head coach of Pakistan's senior and under-23 teams. Solano will take over from Stephen Constantine, and his first major assignment will be the AFC Under-23 qualifiers in September, where Pakistan is grouped with Cambodia, Iraq and Oman. He will also be in charge of the remainder of Pakistan's 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifying campaign, including a double-header against Afghanistan in October. ALSO READ: Serie A 2024-25 top scorer Retegui moving to Saudi Pro League Solano's appointment is the first major signing by the newly elected Pakistan Football Federation with Mohsen Gilani as its president. 'Under President Mohsen Gilani's leadership, PFF proudly welcomes Nolberto Solano as Head Coach of Pakistan U23 with a pathway to the senior team!' the PFF wrote on X while welcoming the former Peru winger. 'A true legend with EPL, World Cup & Copa América pedigree, it's a new era for Pakistan football.' Solano was the assistant coach of Peru when his country qualified for the FIFA World Cup in 2018 in Russia after 36 years. He left the national team in 2022 when Peru failed to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar after it was beaten by Australia in an intercontinental playoff. Constantine led Pakistan to its first-ever victory in a World Cup qualifier in October 2023 and had been coaching the team on a game-to-game basis after his one-year contract expired in November last year. Related Topics Pakistan

Football: A turning point for India's Blue Tigresses
Football: A turning point for India's Blue Tigresses

Mint

time19-07-2025

  • Mint

Football: A turning point for India's Blue Tigresses

Chances are you didn't see the biggest thing to happen to Indian football in recent times. After all, it wasn't beamed on live television or picked up by any of the plethora of streaming services. When India played Thailand earlier this month, in a match that would decide their fate for the 2026 AFC Women's Asian Cup football and keep their World Cup dream alive, it was only streamed live on the Changsuek YouTube Channel and Thai Women's Football Facebook Page. Most of India was hence tuned out as the national women's football team made history. They defeated Thailand, a team ranked 24 places above them in the FIFA rankings, 2-1 on 5 July to qualify for the Asian Cup for the very first time. Yes, India had played the showpiece continental event before —in 2003, when they competed directly in the main draw, and then in 2022, when they were given an automatic spot as hosts but had to leave the tournament due to a covid-19 outbreak in the team. But this was the first Indian side to earn their place in the line-up, that includes football powerhouses like Japan, Australia and South Korea. To get there, they defeated Thailand, a team they had never beaten before in front of their home crowd at the Chiang Mai Stadium. 'It is sad," says India's most-capped player Loitongbam Ashalata Devi, who sat out the tournament as she is recovering from an ankle injury. 'That we had to watch it on the Facebook page of the rival team. But this is why the success of the Indian team is so important. No one will support us till we prove ourselves." The Indian women's team is no stranger to indifference. Though not the most competent of bodies, the All India Football Federation's governance of the women's game was shambolic till recently. The first top-flight club tournament, the Indian Women's League (IWL), was only founded in 2016. National camps were few and far between. In 2023, the IWL took place after the completion of the more popular men's Indian Super League and were made to play in the afternoon in April in the sweltering heat in Ahmedabad. Things have improved in the last couple of years. The IWL now takes place over four months, rather than the 18 days it started out with. Participating clubs have adopted a more professional approach and have boosted player salaries. Players like Manisha Kalyan, Soumya Gugoloth and Jyoti Chauhan earned contracts with European clubs and brought back all that knowledge and experience. Even now, Ashalata points out, most of the national team members have to take up government jobs to sustain themselves. This is what the Indian team that played in Thailand was battling for, a lost past and a better future. The team was as prepared as they had ever been. A two-month national camp under the guidance of new coach Crispin Chhetri, and international friendlies had helped them get ready for the challenge ahead. The 'Blue Tigresses" started their journey by ripping through the competition. They defeated Mongolia 13-0, Timor Leste 4-0 and Iraq 5-0 in their first three Group B matches to set up a tantalising decider. Going into the final match against the hosts, India were dead level with Thailand on nine points and goal difference of +22. It was a virtual knockout against an opponent they had never beaten. Thailand were seeking their 10th Asian Cup qualification and had been to the World Cup twice, in 2015 and 2019. 'That morning, we did our prep, had the team meeting," says defender Sweety Devi Ngangbam, who captained the Indian team in the match against Thailand. 'We knew this was the one chance in our life to go through. We believed in each other, knew we had a great chance with this group." 'There was no room for error, we had to do this," the 25-year-old adds. 'I was lucky that my father was a football coach, pushed me into the game and supported me throughout. But I have seen so many players struggle. Most of them have to battle their families and society just to play the game. Then, they have to deal with things like lack of funds, of access to grounds or a proper diet. So many had to face these challenges, we knew we needed to do this for the future generation of players." This was a team on a mission. Sangita Basfore gave them the lead in the 29th minute. But Thailand came back hard in the second half and scored through Chatchawan Rodhong in the 47th minute. After Basfore secured a lead for India once again, in the 74th minutes, the Indian team protected their lead gallantly, throwing bodies in defence as Thailand mounted one attack after another. Once the final whistle blew, the Indian team erupted in joy, then melted down in tears. 'We kept hugging, and reassuring ourselves that we had done it," says Sweety Devi. While qualifying for the Asian Cup for the first time in 23 years is a historic achievement indeed, the endgame for this team is the World Cup. The AFC Women's Asian Cup Australia will serve as a qualifying event, with the top six teams progressing to the 2027 World Cup in Brazil. 'This could be a turning point in women's football in India," says Ashalata, 32. 'The road to World Cup is open." The dream is on. Hopefully, there may be a few more takers this time. Deepti Patwardhan is a sportswriter based in Mumbai

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store