India’s Sangita Basfore runs with the ball (Photo by Getty Images and @IndianFootball on X) NEW DELHI: The trip to the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup in Australia was supposed to be the moment when Indian women’s football finally stepped out of the shadows and made the much-awaited leap. With six World Cup finishes under their belt, the Blue Tigresses felt the pulse of history. Instead, a campaign of three defeats in three games has dissolved into what many can describe as a disjointed sequence of administrative gambles and subsequent on-field woes, leaving the players to pick up the pieces of a shattered dream.Sangita Basfore, the midfield general who witnessed the nightmare unfold up close when she played all three matches in the tournament earlier this month, tries to hide the deep collective sadness behind the rhetoric of professional growth.
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EXCLUSIVE: Where did it go wrong for India in the Women’s Asia Cup? Aditi Chauhan decodes“None of us are happy with our performance because the result didn’t go our way,” she told TimesofIndia.com during an exclusive interview. “The coach had high expectations of me. But personally I feel that I could not give my best performance or support the team as I should have… But to play on such a big stage against top players. That in itself was a big achievement for us.”
An approach that left more questions than answers
The turbulence began long before the opening whistle in Perth. In a move that baffled many observers, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) took a foreigner-is-better approach just weeks before the tournament. They demoted home coach Crispin Chettri, the man behind the famous qualifying win over Thailand, to an assistant role. He was replaced by Amelia Valverde, a Costa Rican tactician with two World Cup qualifiers on her resume, signed on a frantic short-term two-month deal.Preparation looked seamless on paper as the team spent almost 40 days in Antalya, Turkey testing themselves against European clubs.
Team India in a chat (photo by @IndianFootball on X)
“To be honest, our preparation was very good,” Basfore recalled. “We played against teams from Ukraine and Russia … club teams at Champions League level. We won almost every game.” But as the team moved from the Mediterranean breeze of Turkey to the high pressure of Australia, cracks began to show.“As the games got closer, we were getting more and more excited, but also a little nervous. Until we played the first game, we couldn’t really judge how we would do. No matter how much you prepare, there is always that uncertainty on such a big stage,” admitted the 29-year-old player. “We got serious after the first game. We’re still sad that we feel like we missed out on a World Cup opportunity.”
Coach carousel
With the AIFF not intending to extend Valverde’s contract, it suggests that their solution to success has failed.According to numerous reports, her short tenure has seen tactical volatility, with the AIFF technical committee recently describing her tenure as “disappointing”. She went through three different formations in the three group games. The results on the pitch were devastating, with three losses, zero points and an 11-0 drubbing at the hands of eventual champions Japan.
Sangita Basfore of India (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
Basfore feels there was too little time for Valverde. “She is a very good coach. If she had more time with us, she could understand us even better,” the West Bengal-born midfielder told the website. “But she kept trying and talking to everyone, motivating us on and off the field. There was no problem.”Despite going 11-0 against Japan, Basfore refuses to believe the gap is insurmountable for Indian football. Looking at their other rivals, Vietnam and Chinese Taipei, he insists the difference was not quality but execution and perhaps a bit of luck. “If you look at teams like Vietnam or Chinese Taipei, there is not much difference. We could have done better. We fought hard as a team. We were also unlucky, many of our shots hit the post,” she admitted.“If we had a longer camp and played more friendlies, it would help.
what lies ahead
The road to redemption now leads to Nairobi. In April 2026, the Blue Tigresses will take part in the FIFA series, where they will face hosts Kenya at the Nyayo National Stadium. It’s a chance to reset against a variety of opposition, including Malawi and the very Australian side that hosted their recent continental ordeal.
If we had a longer camp and played more friendlies it would help.
Sangita Basfore, a midfielder for the Indian women’s national team
But there is optimism tempered by a plea for structural change. For Basfor, the nightmare in Australia was not just about tactical formations or foreign versus domestic coaches; it was the everyday reality of the Indian game. READ ALSO: ‘You can’t have random plans’: Aditi Chauhan on where things went wrong for India at the AFC Women’s Asia Cup“Improving local development and extending the duration of the women’s league would help a lot,” she argued.“When the players come home, they don’t always get the proper training or facilities. If the league runs longer, the players will improve and the national team will perform better.”
