- Thursday, April 25, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIAN women’s football faced one of its saddest days in history as the side was kicked out of the Women’s Asian Cup following a Covid-19 outbreak in its camp which meant it could not field a full team for their Group A fixture against Chinese Taipei on Sunday (23).
India is hosting the tournament and the matches are being played in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Pune in the western state of Maharashtra.
Under regulations, coaches are required to name a match-day squad of minimum 13 players for each game and India failed to do the same in their game at DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on Sunday. As a result, the game was cancelled.
India’s third and final group fixture, which was against the People’s Republic of China on Wednesday (26), was also scrapped. India’s first game against Iran, the only match the hosts played in the tournament which ended in a 0-0 draw, was declared void.
The exit of India has now made the final group match between Chinese Taipei and Iran as the decider of the second team to the quarter-finals. China has already qualified after winning both their matches comprehensively.
“The inability of India to participate in the match…triggers Article 6 of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup India 2022 regulations,” the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said in a statement.
Article 6 says “all participating member associations undertake that their participating teams shall play… all of their matches in the finals until elimination”.
However, the exit of India, which is hosting the tournament for the first time since 1989, did not hamper the event’s progress. The AFC said it would continue as scheduled.
Indian football federation president Praful Patel said the team was “heartbroken”.
“We are as disappointed as probably the entire nation would be right now with this unwarranted situation,” he said in a tweet.
“However, the players’ health and well-being are of paramount importance to us & it cannot be compromised under any circumstances,” he added.
It was easier said than done for a number of Indian footballers who come from humble backgrounds and whose lives in the last one year have revolved around playing in the Asian Cup tournament. India’s shocking elimination also shattered their dream of taking a shot at the elusive Fifa World Cup as some teams would qualify for the top event from the current competition.
From captain Ashalata Devi to the youngest in the squad, Hemam Shilky Devi, the Asian Cup was a once in a lifetime opportunity and all of them were looking forward to qualify for the quarterfinals, which would have also taken them to the 2023 World Cup which will be held in Australia and New Zealand.
Even if not a World Cup berth, the Indian women footballers would have made it to the intercontinental play-offs which would have been historic for the country’s football. “Absolutely devastated,” said senior player and goalkeeper Aditi Chauhan aptly capturing the sentiment within the squad right now.
“In the last one year, our lives have revolved around the Asian Cup. Our sole aim was to qualify for quarterfinals and take a shot at the World Cup,” said another player.
“We are extremely sad and disappointed at the moment. But it is not the end of the world and the hope that we will get chances to achieve this in future if we keep on doing well is giving us solace,” she added.
India failed to beat Iran in their first match but a win against Chinese Taipei on Sunday would have booked a quarterfinal berth for them. And, it was not something which they could not have done. The Indian team had beaten Chinese Taipei 1-0 in an international friendly last October.
A second-place finish in the group would have set up Thomas Dennerby’s side against middle-rung sides like Philippines in the quarterfinals and avoided the top-rated teams like Japan, Australia, Korea and China.
The Indian team had been one of the most well-prepared in the tournament. Since early last year, the Indian team had played international matches in Turkey, Uzbekistan, UAE, Bahrain and Brazil. All India Football Federation President Praful Patel had said that no bio-bubble is foolproof against COVID-19 though there are some officials who felt the tournament could have been postponed for two or three months and by that time the pandemic’s third wave would have weakened in India.
Another AIFF official said the federation had done everything it could have in terms of safety measures.
“These players are from humble backgrounds and not high-profile sportspersons. They are not the type who do not follow instructions. They followed the protocols to the ‘T’.
“But somehow COVID-19 could breach the bio-bubble. It is sheer bad luck and unfortunate. People are talking what could have been done, what could not have been done with the benefit of hindsight,” the official added.
The tournament was held under strict health and safety protocols in view of the surge in Covid cases in India and Maharashtra.
All the participating teams, who have been put up in separate hotels, were tested on arrival and they were not allowed outside their hotels — which served as bio-bubbles — till the reports came in.
After that, each team was also tested every 72 hours.
Two members of the Indian team first tested positive on January 19.
The home team underwent another round of tests on Friday and 12 players returned positive on Sunday.
(With PTI inputs)
