AIFF Media Team
YANGON, MYANMAR: Just 36 days after the Indian senior women's team wrote a historic chapter in Indian football by qualifying for the AFC Women's Asian Cup, the Indian U20 women's team put further shine by securing their berths at the AFC U20 Women's Asian Cup.
After a victorious campaign in Yangon, the Young Tigresses received a warm welcome upon their arrival in New Delhi on Monday morning.
In a matter of five weeks, the wait of two decades came to an end. While the Blue Tigresses did it after 23 years, the Young Tigresses will feature at the continental stage after 20 years.
It was also about vanquishing the demons of the past. Heartbreakingly, in 2022, the senior side had to withdraw from the Asian Cup due to a COVID outbreak. The year after that, the U20 side were knocked out of the first round of the qualifiers by the narrowest of margins, on goal difference, by Vietnam.
Winger Neha was one of the few players who returned grieving from Vietnam two years ago and had an opportunity to redeem themselves this time in Myanmar. The relief on her face after the game was palpable.
"I feel ecstatic that I've done it for the first time, finally. Last time in Vietnam, we missed the qualifiers by just a goal. But this time, I feel proud. I would like to extend my gratitude to my father. Before the match, for the first time, he told me, "Beta, go do something for Team India today", so I'm feeling very proud. The coach also noticed there's something good in me and supported me a lot. I would also like to thank my papa," said the 19-year-old who provided the assist for Pooja's winning goal with a superb cross from the left flank.
Head coach Joakim Alexandersson, who has trained this bunch since his appointment in December last year, had wet eyes after his first big achievement in Indian women's football.
"This is very special for the girls. They’ve been preparing for many months now, and seeing how the senior women’s team qualified in such a fantastic way gave them extra motivation. They had a great spirit and really wanted to achieve this too. Qualifying for the Asian Cup was our only goal when we arrived in Myanmar, and now we've done it," said Alexandersson.
Captain Shubhangi Singh had expressed her disappointment after the goalless draw with Indonesia in the first game, but was over the moon after Sunday's result.
"I’m actually beyond happy, to be honest. The way we worked as a team, especially in the second half, we gave it our all, and it was totally worth it. The crowd tried to put us under pressure, and it got harder, but our mindset remained strong.
"I think we were the better team, but credit to them as they performed well too. We came in with the mentality of winning, because for us, a draw in today’s game would’ve almost been like a loss. So we went for it, and we came back with the win. That’s all that matters," said Shubhangi.
The second half wasn't comfortable by any stretch of the imagination as the hosts piled the pressure in the Indian half. But the Indian backline, led by Cindy Colney and Thoibisana Chanu in central defence, who hadn't conceded any goal in the qualifiers, was in no mood to let go of that perfect record. With every clearance and every interception, the belief grew stronger. And on rare occasions when Myanmar breached them, standing in their way and the goal was Indian custodian Monalisha Devi. The hosts came mightily close to equalising in the 80th minute when a deflected ball would've trickled past the goal line if not for Monalisha's rapid reactions. The 19-year-old picked up a unique distinction of being the only player who was part of both qualifying squads — senior and U20s.
Alexandersson noted, "Honestly, the second half wasn’t the best in terms of the quality of our play. But to keep a clean sheet for the third time, and to work as hard as we did as a team, shows the fantastic morale these players have."
After the on-pitch celebrations, the Swedish coach gave a heartfelt speech addressed to the players and the staff.
"This is a very emotional moment for me because I saw how hard you were worked out there. But despite the challenges, the effort you put into the game was immense. We fought so hard, defending with every part of our bodies. We truly showed that we deserve to be in this Asian Cup, and that is exactly why we are here.
"In the first game, we couldn’t score goals, but we improved on that. And today, that improvement has been enough. Looking back at all three matches, I believe we totally deserve to qualify for the Asian Cup.
"Of course, there are still things we can improve on, but now we have time before the tournament to sharpen our play style and make ourselves even better. I look forward to that," said Alexandersson.
And that's not all. Eyes will now also be on the India U17 women's team, who will aim to complete a hat-trick of Asian Cup qualifications for Indian women's football this year. The U17s haven't competed at the Asian Cup since 2005, which means ending another two-decade-long wait will be on the cards. In preparation for the Qualifiers, the U17s will play the SAFF U17 Women's Championship beginning on August 20. The Qualifiers will take place from October 13 to 17, where the Young Tigresses will face Uzbekistan and hosts Kyrgyz Republic.
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