Latest news with #Chettri
India Gazette
9 hours ago
- Sport
- India Gazette
Raw talent of Priyadharshini Selladurai: From paddy fields of Thiruvarur to Thailand
Chiang Mai [Thailand], June 28 (ANI): Raw talent' is how coach Crispin Chettri defines Priyadharshini Selladurai, the Indian women's national team's newest goalscorer. As a loose ball landed right in front of her feet just inside the box, the 22-year-old midfielder's eyes lit up. She took a careful touch with her side-foot and laced it into the bottom corner to score India's 11th against Mongolia, but her first ever for the country. Priyadharshini added another goal later, as she tapped in Pyari Xaxa's cutback to take India's tally to 13, marking the Blue Tigresses' biggest win in AFC competitions. Two goals in three matches for the country, but she hasn't yet made a first XI appearance in the Indian Women's League (IWL). That's not a statement you hear every day. But her hard work in training and performances in games have made Chettri fully agree with his decision to give her a first national team call-up. 'Priyadharshini is one of our raw talents. I say that because she hasn't gotten many minutes in the IWL. But we still believed in her talent and gave her the opportunity to be part of our national team camp. And she's doing well here. However, playing in the IWL will help her a lot to mature as a player. I think we will have a very good number 10 in her, in the future,' said Chettri as quoted by a press release from AIFF. Priyadharshini has been part of Chettri's squad since he first took charge ahead of the Pink Ladies Cup in February. However, she made her debut in May, in the first friendly against Uzbekistan in Bengaluru. And just 24 days later came the first goal. 'For a long time, I had been wondering if I would ever get selected for the Indian team. Now that I've been selected and scored a goal, I'm truly happy. I can't even express how I felt inside. I don't have the words to describe it. It was like a dream come true to score for the country,' Priyadharshini shared. The dream grew gradually. From playing in the paddy fields of her small village of Savalakkaran in the Thiruvarur district of Tamil Nadu, to scoring goals for India in Chiang Mai, also a city known for paddy production, the journey, as is the case with most female footballers in India, wasn't easy. 'I started playing football when I was in sixth class. I saw my seniors playing in the school, and decided to join them. I was selected for the Tamil Nadu team for the National School Games in Manipur in 2016, which was the first time I played outside my state,' said the midfielder. That became the turning point in her life. Football could be taken seriously. She liked it, and she was getting good at it. But it took time for her parents to approve of her new passion. 'I come from a place where girls aren't encouraged to pursue sports. This was like breaking a barrier for me,' she said. But Priyadharshini had the support of her school's physical education teacher, V Muthukumar, who actively went from door to door and convinced the parents of the village to allow their girls to play football. 'We didn't have a proper football ground, so we played on paddy fields. My coach helped us a lot. He arranged the playing equipment and even gave me my first pair of football boots. Even today, when I go back, I train in the same paddy field,' she said. What earned Priyadharshini her place in the national team were impressive performances for Tamil Nadu in the Rajmata Jijabai Trophy for the Senior Women's National Football Championship and the National Games. Before her international cap, the biggest highlight of her career remained the goal in the 2023 Senior Women's NFC final in Punjab, which won Tamil Nadu only their second-ever title. Playing alongside her idol Indumathi Kathiresan, she went on to represent her state in the 2024 and 2025 Rajmata Jijabai Trophy and the National Games in Gujarat 2024 and Uttarakhand 2025. At the club level, she signed for Gokulam Kerala FC in 2023-24 and made five appearances off the bench in the IWL that season. But Priyadharshini took the Kerala Women's League by storm, scoring 24 goals in the Malabarians' title win and ending up as the league's top scorer. Success with Tamil Nadu earned her a job as a block health officer at the government hospital in Alangudi, a town situated half an hour from her home. 'As I was appointed under the sports quota, I get paid leave when I'm on national duty, like right now. For people back home, it's a matter of pride that I've become the first one to play for India from my village,' said Priyadharshini. India will play Timor Leste (June 29 at 14:30 IST), Iraq (July 2 at 14:30 IST), and Thailand (July 5 at 18:00 IST) in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers. All matches will be streamed live on Changsuek YouTube Channel and Thai Women's Football Facebook Page. (ANI)
The Hindu
19 hours ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
India in AFC Women's Asian Cup Qualifiers: Blue Tigresses hope to continue winning form against Timor Leste
After a record-breaking win in the campaign opener, the Indian senior women's team will look to continue the winning momentum in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers when it takes on Timor Leste on Sunday at the 700th Anniversary of Chiang Mai Stadium. The five-team Group B is currently led by Iraq, which is on four points after a 5-2 victory over Mongolia and a 0-0 draw with Timor Leste. India, which beat Mongolia 13-0, and Thailand, which beat Timor Leste 4-0, are on three points each. Despite Timor Leste being ranked 158th, 32 places below Mongolia, Indian coach Crispin Chettri believed that the Southeast Asian side would pose a stronger challenge. Having watched all teams in action after the first two matchdays, there's now a much clearer assessment of all the remaining three opponents. 'Timor Leste are a better organised team than Mongolia, and I feel they are better organised defensively than Iraq as well. They prefer going for counter-attacks. They don't mind keeping the ball either. So, in patches, they are good. But as Thailand dominated the match completely, we can't say much about their attack. But they have got pace in their team as well,' said Chettri. Chettri and his coaching staff were in attendance on Thursday as Timor Leste restricted 46th-ranked Thailand to four goals. India, ranked 70, has never faced Timor Leste before. Coached by Indonesian Emral bin Bustamam, Timor Leste has been more active in international football as compared to Mongolia. It finished fourth in the 2024 AFF Women's Cup, where it drew against Laos and Singapore. It has played in four editions of the ASEAN Women's Championship, and the 2-1 win over Singapore in 2019 remains the only official victory in its history. The 0-0 draw with Iraq on Monday was its first-ever point in an AFC competition.
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First Post
21 hours ago
- Sport
- First Post
India vs Timor Leste: Crispin Chettri warns of tough challenge in AFC Women's Asian Cup Qualifiers
India will face Timor Leste in their second AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifier on Sunday in Chiang Mai. After a dominant 13-0 win over Mongolia, coach Crispin Chettri expects a tougher test against a well-organised Timor Leste side. read more Chiang Mai (Thailand): Coming off a thumping victory in its tournament opener, the Indian team will look to continue the winning momentum in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers when it takes on Timor Leste here on Sunday. The five-team Group B is currently led by Iraq, who are on four points after a 5-2 victory over Mongolia and a 0-0 draw with Timor Leste. India, who beat Mongolia 13-0, and Thailand, who beat Timor Leste 4-0, are on three points each. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Despite Timor Leste being ranked 158th, 32 places below Mongolia, India coach Crispin Chettri believed that the Southeast Asian side would pose a stronger challenge. Having watched all teams in action after the first two matchdays, there's now a much clearer assessment of the remaining three opponents. More from Football 'Timor Leste are a better organised team than Mongolia, and I feel they are better organised defensively than Iraq as well. They prefer going for counter-attacks. They don't mind keeping the ball either,' Chettri said. 'So, in patches, they are good. But as Thailand dominated the match completely, we can't say much about their attack. But they have got pace in their team as well.' Chettri and his coaching staff were in attendance at the 700th Anniversary of Chiang Mai Stadium on Thursday as Timor Leste kept 46th-ranked Thailand to four goals. India, ranked 70, have never faced Timor Leste before. Coached by Indonesian Emral bin Bustamam, Timor Leste have been more active in international football as compared to Mongolia. They finished fourth in the 2024 AFF Women's Cup, where they drew against Laos and Singapore. They have played in four editions of the ASEAN Women's Championship, and the 2-1 win over Singapore in 2019 remains the only official victory in their history. The 0-0 draw with Iraq on Monday was their first-ever point in an AFC competition. India utilised their five-day break to recover and prepare for the tighter schedule ahead, with three matches in a week. The Blue Tigresses had two morning training sessions on Tuesday and Thursday, and two sessions on Friday and Saturday. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'I think when you have a tournament of four matches, this kind of rest helps in team building. Tactically, we worked on a few things which maybe we didn't do well in the first match. 'We had four training sessions to work on that. So, I think that has helped us a lot in preparing for our upcoming matches and specifically for certain teams also,' said Chettri. There was no training on Wednesday as Chettri gave complete rest to the players, allowing them time to refresh, something the coach believes is necessary between games. 'For me, recovery and staying outside football for a certain time is important. When you are in a tournament with high pressure and playing back-to-back matches, sometimes getting out of the football zone, being yourself, and not thinking about the game is helpful, I believe,' the India coach said. 'Players will come out more focused in the next day's training session. They will put in more effort, and I think that will help them cope mentally too,' said Chettri. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
News18
a day ago
- Sport
- News18
India Go Up Against Resilient Timor Leste In AFC Women's Asian Cup Qualifiers
Last Updated: Indian women's football team will look to continue the winning momentum in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers when they take on Timor Leste. Following a resounding victory in their tournament opener, the Indian team aims to maintain their winning momentum in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers as they face Timor Leste on Sunday. Group B, consisting of five teams, is currently led by Iraq, who have secured four points after a 5-2 win over Mongolia and a 0-0 draw with Timor Leste. Both India, having defeated Mongolia 13-0, and Thailand, with a 4-0 victory over Timor Leste, have three points each. Despite Timor Leste being ranked 158th, 32 spots below Mongolia, India's coach Crispin Chettri anticipates a tougher challenge from the Southeast Asian team. Having observed all teams in action after the first two matchdays, there is now a clearer understanding of the remaining three opponents. 'Timor Leste are better organised than Mongolia and, defensively, even stronger than Iraq. They prefer counter-attacks and are comfortable with possession," Chettri noted. 'They have their strengths, but Thailand dominated the match against them, so it's hard to gauge their attack. However, they have pace in their team." Chettri and his coaching staff watched the match at the 700th Anniversary of Chiang Mai Stadium on Thursday, where Timor Leste held 46th-ranked Thailand to four goals. India, ranked 70th, have never played against Timor Leste before. They have participated in four editions of the ASEAN Women's Championship, with their only official win being a 2-1 victory over Singapore in 2019. Their 0-0 draw with Iraq on Monday marked their first-ever point in an AFC competition. India used their five-day break to recover and prepare for the demanding schedule ahead, with three matches in a week. The Blue Tigresses had two morning training sessions on Tuesday and Thursday, and two sessions on Friday and Saturday. 'I believe that in a tournament with four matches, this kind of rest aids in team building. We worked on a few tactical aspects that we may not have executed well in the first match. 'We had four training sessions to focus on that, which has helped us prepare for the upcoming matches and specific teams," said Chettri. There was no training on Wednesday, as Chettri gave the players a complete rest day to refresh, something he considers crucial between games. 'In my view, recovery and spending time away from football are important. In a high-pressure tournament with consecutive matches, taking a break from the game helps. Players return more focused to the next training session, putting in more effort, which helps them mentally too," Chettri explained. First Published: June 28, 2025, 15:07 IST
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
India face resilient Timor Leste in AFC Women's Asian Cup Qualifiers
Chiang Mai , Coming off a thumping victory in its tournament opener, the Indian team will look to continue the winning momentum in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers when it takes on Timor Leste here on Sunday. HT Image The five-team Group B is currently led by Iraq, who are on four points after a 5-2 victory over Mongolia and a 0-0 draw with Timor Leste. India, who beat Mongolia 13-0, and Thailand, who beat Timor Leste 4-0, are on three points each. Despite Timor Leste being ranked 158th, 32 places below Mongolia, India coach Crispin Chettri believed that the Southeast Asian side would pose a stronger challenge. Having watched all teams in action after the first two matchdays, there's now a much clearer assessment of the remaining three opponents. "Timor Leste are a better organised team than Mongolia, and I feel they are better organised defensively than Iraq as well. They prefer going for counter-attacks. They don't mind keeping the ball either," Chettri said. "So, in patches, they are good. But as Thailand dominated the match completely, we can't say much about their attack. But they have got pace in their team as well." Chettri and his coaching staff were in attendance at the 700th Anniversary of Chiang Mai Stadium on Thursday as Timor Leste kept 46th-ranked Thailand to four goals. India, ranked 70, have never faced Timor Leste before. Coached by Indonesian Emral bin Bustamam, Timor Leste have been more active in international football as compared to Mongolia. They finished fourth in the 2024 AFF Women's Cup, where they drew against Laos and Singapore. They have played in four editions of the ASEAN Women's Championship, and the 2-1 win over Singapore in 2019 remains the only official victory in their history. The 0-0 draw with Iraq on Monday was their first-ever point in an AFC competition. India utilised their five-day break to recover and prepare for the tighter schedule ahead, with three matches in a week. The Blue Tigresses had two morning training sessions on Tuesday and Thursday, and two sessions on Friday and Saturday. "I think when you have a tournament of four matches, this kind of rest helps in team building. Tactically, we worked on a few things which maybe we didn't do well in the first match. "We had four training sessions to work on that. So, I think that has helped us a lot in preparing for our upcoming matches and specifically for certain teams also," said Chettri. There was no training on Wednesday as Chettri gave complete rest to the players, allowing them time to refresh, something the coach believes is necessary between games. "For me, recovery and staying outside football for a certain time is important. When you are in a tournament with high pressure and playing back-to-back matches, sometimes getting out of the football zone, being yourself, and not thinking about the game is helpful, I believe," the India coach said. "Players will come out more focused in the next day's training session. They will put in more effort, and I think that will help them cope mentally too," said Chettri. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
