They open campaign against Maldives, target to end six-year title drought
Margao: India will begin their SAFF Women’s Championship 2026 Group B campaign against Maldives at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Margao today, with the hosts looking to return to the top after semi-final exits in the last two editions.
The Blue Tigresses, five-time champions, last won the tournament in 2019 and will look to reclaim the title in the eighth edition of the competition, which concludes on June 6 in Goa. India had previously won the championship in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2019 before Bangladesh emerged champions in 2022 and 2024.
Head coach Crispin Chettri has named a 23-member Indian squad featuring Goa’s Karishma Shirvoikar, who will represent the country in her native state. Manisha Kalyan, who plays for Alianza Lima, will join the squad from June 1 when the FIFA international match window opens.
Ranked 69th in the FIFA rankings, India are the highest-ranked side in the tournament and hold a dominant head-to-head record against Maldives, having won seven of their eight meetings while drawing the other. India have scored 68 goals and conceded just once in those encounters.
India possess quality across all areas of the pitch. In defence, Astam Oraon and Nirmala Devi Phanjoubam, recently named IWL’s Best Defender, are expected to play key roles, while Aveka Singh and the experienced Sangita Basfore will look to control the midfield.
Maldives, ranked 167th, enter the tournament as the lowest-ranked side and are yet to win the SAFF Women’s Championship. The visitors will be playing their first match of 2026 when they face India in Margao.
“It is quite tricky for us because SAFF Championship is getting competitive day by day. Being hosts of the tournament, fans will certainly expect a bit from us,” said Chettri during the pre-tournament press conference on Sunday.
“The overall target is to qualify for the next Asian Cup so the preparations start from now,” he added.
India forward Grace Dangmei said the team had learned valuable lessons from March’s AFC Women’s Asian Cup campaign.
“We understood where we need to improve and hopefully we can implement those learnings in this tournament. We will try to go all the way,” she said.
Maldives coach Mohamed Sobah acknowledged the challenge awaiting his side against the hosts.
“We have huge respect for India. We know that they are going to press,” he said.
