Maintaining focus and being responsible key to doing well in women’s Asian Cup: Ashalata

Maintaining focus and taking up responsibility by each player will be important for the Indian women’s football team ahead of the AFC Asian Cup, to be hosted in the country next month, feels captain Ashalata Devi.

The players are currently camping here in preparation of the continental showpiece to be held in Mumbai and Pune from January 10 to February 6. The team returned from Brazil earlier this month after taking part in a four-nation tournament.

“It’s not easy maintaining focus ahead of such a big tournament, but I’ve found that it’s the little things that tend to help you with that,” said Ashalata.

Among the 27 campers, 13 are under the age of 25 and senior players like Ashalata are helping the younger ones to take up responsibility.

“In the larger scheme of things, it’s about taking responsibility. We all talk about this being a very young squad, and it’s great to have all the 19-20-year-olds,” said the defender in a release from All India Football Federation.

“They (younger players) bring great energy into the team. But at the same time, everyone needs to realise that they are not kids anymore.

“They are in the senior team for a reason, being responsible off the pitch builds that mentality of doing the same on the pitch as well, and that’s the mentality that we all must have, going into the Asian Cup.” Winger Dangmei Grace, who scored a goal against Venezuela in the four-nation tournament in Brazil, said it’s time to polish the rough edges as the tournament is just five weeks away.

“We just have five weeks left for the Asian Cup now. It’s all about perfecting our game now. All of want us to do well in the Asian Cup.” India will play their first group match against Iran on January 20 before taking on Chinese Taipei and China on January 23 and 26 respectively.

Five teams from the tournament will qualify directly for the 2023 World Cup and two more countries will advance to the inter-confederation play-offs.