On Wednesday, March 4, the Indian women’s national football team began their campaign at the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup with a loss. The Blue Tigresses lost their opening fixture against Vietnam in Perth, Australia, by a score of 1-2. India got the lone goal from Sanfida Nongrum.
The Blue Tigresses had qualified in the tournament after 23 years and have been placed in Group C alongside Vietnam, Chinese Taipei and Japan. India had faced Vietnam after three years, since the Paris Olympics Qualifiers in 2023. The Indian team had also lost that match by 1-3.
The Blue Tigresses will play their second game of the tournament on March 7, where they will face former World Champions Japan. The Asian Cup tournament serves as a qualifier match for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Only six teams will get direct entry for the event, and two will go for the Inter-Continental Play-offs.
Vietnam dominated the first half, putting India’s defence in a tough spot and through that, they claimed their first goal of the match. The Blue Tigresses tried to counterattack by making changes in the gameplay through Manisha Kalyan. India’s goalkeeper Panthoi Chanu and captain Sweety Devi took the spotlight in the first half.
After halftime, India’s Rimpa Haldar and Sanfida Nongrum were brought in as substitutes. An error from Vietnam’s end gave Sanfida the chance to go against the goalkeeper, and she found the back of the net. Nirmala Devi made a poor attempt on defense but Sanfida intervened and took the ball back from the Vietnamese forward with a shoulder push.
Indian defence made another error in the match, and Vietnam’s Thi Hoa took the advantage, made a sharp run to the left flank and gave a pass to Thi Van, who took the ball past three defenders.
Meanwhile, in the second half, India tried to come back strongly with a more solid defence and lead it majorly over the Vietnamese by keeping two substitutes in the forward line.
In the 51st minute, India got its first goal from Sanfida and tied the score at 1-1. But the Vietnamese continued to strike the Indian defence and secured their second goal through their forward Thị Vạn Sự Ngan, who found a loose ball outside the box. She then went on to convert it into the second goal for the team with a curling shot as the team took the win by 2-1.
