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The India U17 women's national team, after a brief camp in Gurugram, India, reached Suzhou on Monday ahead of their AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup China 2026.
India, which qualified for the tournament after 21 years, will begin their campaign with a match against Australia (May 2, 17:00 IST on Pitch 8), followed by Japan (May 5, 17:00 IST on Pitch 4) and Lebanon (May 8, 13:00 IST on Pitch 8) in Group B, according to a release. All of India's matches will take place at the Suzhou Taihu Football Sports Centre pitches. The top two teams in the group and the two best third-placed teams among all three groups will make it to the quarter-finals. Further, the four quarter-final winners will qualify for the FIFA U17 Women's World Cup Morocco 2026. The AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup China 2026 will be streamed live on the AFC Asian Cup YouTube Channel. The Young Tigresses arrived in Suzhou early morning on Monday, April 27, and will hold their first training session in the evening. Under Italian head coach Pamela Conti, who was appointed in January, India has had a continuous training camp of more than three months, the bulk of which was held in Bengaluru. Being a U17 side, they won the SAFF U19 Women's Championship title in February, and in March, won two friendly games against Myanmar in Yangon. Earlier this month, they played three friendly matches against Russia in Sochi, and while they lost all three, it provided valuable experience of playing strong opponents ahead of the Asian challenge. After returning from Russia, the Young Tigresses continued their training camp in Gurugram from April 20 to 26 before departing for China. India's 23-member squad for AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup China 2026: Goalkeepers: Munni, Surajmuni Kumari, Tamphasana Devi Konjengbam. Defenders: Abhista Basnett, Alena Devi Sarangthem, Alisha Lyngdoh, Divyani Linda, Elizabed Lakra, Joyshini Chanu Huidrom, Ritu Badaik, Taniya Devi Tonambam. Midfielders: Alva Devi Senjam, Bonifilia Shullai, Julan Nongmaithem, Olivia Chanu Ningthoujam, Pritika Barman, Redima Devi Chingkhamayum, Thandamoni Baskey. Forwards: Anushka Kumari, Anwita Raghuraman, Joya, Pearl Fernandes, Valaina Fernandes. Head coach: Pamela ContiAssistant coaches: Vincenzo Conti and Nivetha RamadossGoalkeeping coach: Mario AguiarStrength and conditioning coach: Amit Yadav India's schedule at the AFC U17 Women's Asian Cup China 2026: 17:00 IST, May 2: Australia vs India (Suzhou Taihu Football Sports Centre Pitch 8)17:00 IST, May 5: India vs Japan (Suzhou Taihu Football Sports Centre Pitch 4)13:00 IST, May 8: India vs Lebanon (Suzhou Taihu Football Sports Centre Pitch 8). (ANI)
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