Pakistan will face India in their opening match of the SAFF Women’s Championship in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Wednesday, September 7.
Pakistan have been placed alongside India, defending champions, Bangladesh and Maldives in Group A. Meanwhile, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bhutan are slotted in Group B. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the semi-finals.
The tournament will be held from September 6-19 in Kathmandu.
During the opening match on Monday, hosts Nepal beat Bhutan by 4-0 with Sabitra Bhandarai and Anita Basnet scoring a brace each.
In the remaining group matches, Pakistan will face Bangladesh on September 10 and Maldives on September 13.
With Pakistan returning to action after a very long time, Pakistan Head Coach Adeel Rizki was cautiously optimistic about his team’s chances.
“Playing after such a long time is exciting but at the same time is a bit challenging. We have tried to put together our team, and have got good players. Pakistan is a very competitive team and will fight till the end and play good football,” said Rizki during the pre-tournament press conference.
Pakistan have their work cut out against India as their neighbours have won every edition of the SAFF Women’s Championship since it began in 2010. They are also favourites to win their sixth title in a row.
Maria Khan, midfielder, will lead the Pakistan team in her debut appearance for the national side. She has played club football in USA and UAE in the past.
Other Pakistani players to watch out for includes attacking midfielders Suha Hirani and Marvi Baig, striker Zulfia Nazir and experienced defender Malika-e-Noor. Former Pakistan captain Hajra Khan is also part of the squad.
Pakistan's attacking midfielder Suha Hirani will be one of the players to watch out for at the upcoming SAFF Women's Championship ⚽#saffwomen pic.twitter.com/h4OSnSmD86
— Muneeb Farrukh (@Muneeb313_) September 2, 2022
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Malika-e-Noor plays as a defender for the Pakistan national women's football team.<br><br>In September 2011, Noor scored 14 goals and got 11 assists in Young Rising Stars' 25-0 win over Margala in the 7th National Women Football Championship.<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/SAFFWomensChampionship?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#SAFFWomensChampionship</a> <a href=”https://t.co/TnFlBppZLs”>pic.twitter.com/TnFlBppZLs</a></p>— Muneeb Farrukh (@Muneeb313_) <a href=”https://twitter.com/Muneeb313_/status/1564996926935896065?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>August 31, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>
This will be the first time in eight years that the Pakistan women’s team will participate in an international match. They last played during the 2014 SAFF Women’s Championship, which was hosted by Pakistan.
Syeda Mahpara, Nisha Ashraf, Malika-e-Noor, Zulfia Nazir, Roshnan Ali, Sahar Zaman and Hajra Khan, who are named in the current squad, were also part of the Pakistan football team during the 2014 SAFF Women’s Championship.
Pakistan’s national teams are eligible to play in international competition, since FIFA lifted the ban on the country in June. FIFA imposed ban on the Pakistan Football Federation in April 2021 due to undue third-party interference.
Squad
Maria Khan (c), Hajra Khan, Maliha Nasir, Mishal Akram Bhatti, Rameen Fareed, Alina Isphani, Anmool Hira, Ghazala Aamir, Khadija Kazmi, Marvi Baig, Nizalia Siddique, Sara Khan, Shahida Amin, Shanza Nazir, Suha Hirani, Malika-e-Noor, Nisha Ashraf, Roshan Ali, Sahar Zaman, Mahpara Shahid, Zulfia Nazir, Atika Nasir and Nadia Khan.
