Alanya, Feb 21:
The Indian senior women’s team have touched down in the coastal town of Alanya for their first assignment of the year – the Turkish Women’s Cup 2024.
The tournament will see India square off against three opponents, including two European sides the Blue Tigresses have never faced before – Estonia and Kosovo.
The other Asian side are Hong Kong, against whom India hold an unbeaten record of eight wins and a draw in nine previous meetings.
Although all three teams are ranked lower than India (65th), the matches are anticipated to be tight and physical affairs, especially with the quality possessed by the European teams. It presents a chance to create history as India look to register their first-ever win over a UEFA side in an official match.
India’s opening fixture at the Gold City Sport Complex will be against 98th-ranked Estonia on February 21 at 19:00 IST. The record 11-time Women’s Baltic Cup champions contested the Turkish Women’s Cup in 2023 as well, recording a 1-2 loss to Kosovo, followed by a 1-1 draw with North Macedonia, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) sources said.
Estonia are led by two local head coaches, Anastassia Morkovkina and Sirje Kapper – both former internationals. Morkovnina is Estonia’s all-time top scorer. In the current squad, goalscoring responsibilities are mostly shouldered by 25-year-old Lisette Tammik, who netted six of Estonia’s 11 goals in the 2023-24 UEFA Women’s Nations League C as they finished 2nd in Group 4 with 10 points after beating Armenia and Kazakhstan.
Estonia have come to Turkey with a largely youthful squad, with 13 of their 22 players born in the year 2000 or later. Among their most experienced players are defenders Kelly Rosen and Siret R??met, goalkeeper Karina Kork, and midfielders Kairi Himanen, Vlada Kubassova and Mari Liis Lillem?e.
The squad mostly contains players from the Naiste Meistriliiga, Estonia’s top division league. Only six members play for foreign clubs in other European leagues in Austria, Poland, Hungary, Norway and Finland.
Hong Kong will be a familiar face for a few senior names in the Indian squad when they meet on February 24 at 19:00 IST. The Blue Tigresses last faced the East Asians in two friendlies in 2019, winning 5-2 and 1-0, respectively. Pyari Xaxa, Grace Dangmei and Sanju, who are all part of the current squad, netted in those fixtures.
The history between India and Hong Kong goes way back to the first meeting at the 1980 AFC Women’s Championship in Kozhikode, and Saturday’s game will add a new chapter in it.
