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Kuala Lumpur: India will spare no effort in their buildup to the AFC Women's Asian Cup Australia 2026™ with a meticulous training programme planned.

The South Asian side sealed automatic qualification to the continental showpiece for the first time and will be determined to stamp their mark against Asia's best next March.

Factfile

‍FIFA World Ranking: 70

Head Coach: Crispin Chettri (IND)

How they got there: Qualifiers Group B winners

Previous appearances: 9

Best placing: Runners-up (2)

2022 result: Withdrew

Fun fact: India are through to the Finals on merit for the first time since the Qualifiers were introduced

Having been forced to withdraw from the 2022 edition on home soil following a COVID-19 outbreak in the squad, India were determined to earn their place at Australia 2026.

Such was their drive that when the dust settled in Group B of the Qualifiers, India returned home with a perfect 12 points.

They kicked off their campaign with a 13-0 win over Mongolia, which was followed by a 4-0 triumph against Timor-Leste.

A 5-0 defeat of Iraq set up a final day showdown with Thailand, who also entered the tie with a perfect record of three wins.

India got off to a dream start, with Sangita Basfore giving them the lead in the 28th minute.

Thailand fought back to draw level through Chatchawan Rodthong in the 47th minute but the Blue Tigresses were not to be denied their place in history, with Sangita netting the winner in the 74th minute.

Australia 2026, however, will be a much tougher challenge and head coach Crispin Chettri has already started to lay out his plans for the buildup.

As many as 12 friendly matches have been planned to ensure a competitive squad with Chettri saying while they may have scaled a mountain in qualifying, a tougher challenge awaits at the Finals and India must keep growing as a team.  

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