India face uphill task against Thailand in must-win clash

Chiang Mai: India will have to play out of their skin when they take on higher-ranked Thailand for a place in next year’s AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia here on Saturday.

India have never defeated Thailand and have never reached the AFC Women’s Asian Cup through the qualifiers route. The Blue Tigresses last featured in the continent’s premier tournament in 2003 when there were no qualifiers. They did participate in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022 as hosts but had to withdraw due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the squad.

After more than two months of continuous toil and three wins in the group so far, India will look to grab the opportunity to stay on course for the bigger dream of a first-ever qualification to the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2027.

“Qualification right now would be a huge boost for Indian football overall,” said coach Crispin Chettri.

“We’re going through a challenging phase at the moment, and the women’s team qualifying would really provide a ray of hope. It would also help the women’s game grow in India. More young players would be inspired to take up football professionally.

“For those already in the national team, it would be an opportunity to face the best teams in Asia, and possibly the world. So in every way, I believe it would be a big step forward for football in India.”

Thailand are ranked 46th, 24 places above India, and both teams have won three matches each in the qualifiers so far.

The Blue Tigresses defeated Mongolia 13-0, Timor Leste 4-0 and Iraq 5-0, while the Chabakaew beat the same opponents 11-0, 4-0 and 7-0 respectively.

That leaves both sides with a goal difference of +22, setting up a knockout clash in every sense. agencies