Women’s national team coach Maymol Rocky on Friday named a strong 20-member squad for the first round of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics qualifiers to be held in Myanmar as they aim to cross this stage for the first time in history.
The team, which had a two weeks camp in Mumbai to prepare for the first round, would take on Nepal in their first encounter on November 8, followed by Bangladesh on November 11 and hosts Myanmar on November 13 in Group C.
According to the qualification format, the winners and runners-up from the group would automatically qualify for the second round with two best finishing third place teams from the four groups in the first round would also advance.
Talking about the team, Rocky said, “The girls are ready and looking forward to play. We will enter the tournament with a positive mindset among the players as well as the entire staff. Our aim is to go through to the next round and we are looking forward to that. We need to qualify and I’m confident that we will do so.”
Squad:
Goalkeepers: E. Panthoi Chanu, Aditi Chauhan, M. Linthoingambi Devi
Defenders: L. Ashalata Devi, Manisha Panna, Ng. Sweety Devi, Jabamani Tudu, Dalima Chhibber, Pyari Xaxa
Midfielders: Sangita Basfore, Sanju Yadav, Margaret Devi, Ranjana Chanu, Indumathi Kathiresan
Forwards: Y. Kamala Devi, Anju Tamang, N. Ratanbala Devi, Ng. Bala Devi, Dangmei Grace, R. Sandhiya Ranganathan