India finish top as Bangladesh line up Nepal showdown in SAFF Women’s Championship

Bangladesh’s unbeaten march in the SAFF Women’s Championship came to a halt as India returned to winning ways with a dominant victory, capitalising on defensive lapses to secure top spot in Group B and avoid a semi-final showdown with hosts Nepal.

At Goa’s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Sunday, Peter James Butler’s side suffered a 3-0 defeat, finishing runners-up in the group, bdnews24.com reports. 

Earlier in the day, Nepal, runners-up in each of the last three editions, beat Sri Lanka 2-0 to top Group A. Bhutan progressed as runners-up, setting up a semi-final against India on Tuesday, while Bangladesh will face Nepal for a place in the final.

India, the tournament’s record five-time champions, had opened their campaign with an 11-0 demolition of Maldives, while Bangladesh beat the island nation 4-2. To finish top of the group, Bangladesh needed victory but failed to deliver.

The first clear chance fell to Anika Rania Siddiqui after just 90 seconds. A defensive mistake left the Sweden-based forward one-on-one with the goalkeeper, but her weak effort was comfortably saved.

Bangladesh threatened again through Maria Manda and Shamsunnahar Junior before gradually losing control in midfield.

India began creating chances and broke the deadlock in the 36th minute when defender Kohati Kisku misjudged a clearance, allowing Pyari Xaxa to score with a composed finish.

Bangladesh pushed hard after the break.

Butler introduced Shaheda Akter Ripa, Umehla Marma and Sagarika in a triple substitution on 65 minutes, and Umehla soon missed a promising opportunity.

Goalkeeper Mile Akter kept Bangladesh alive with a series of excellent saves, but India doubled their lead in the 77th minute when Linda Kom converted a penalty after Suravi Jannat fouled an opponent inside the box.

Malavika added a late third to seal victory.

The defeat ended Bangladesh’s unbeaten SAFF run that stretched back to a 4-0 semi-final loss to India in 2019.

The reigning back-to-back champions had arrived in Goa chasing a third consecutive title, but India brought that momentum to an abrupt stop.