India women face Kenya in FIFA Series after Asian Cup disappointment

India’s women’s football team will face hosts Kenya in the FIFA Series 2026 after a disappointing Asian Cup campaign. With only four teams in the competition, the match acts as a semi-final as India look to rebuild momentum

Nairobi: A month after its AFC Women’s Asian Cup campaign drew to a painful end, the Indian team will face hosts Kenya in the FIFA Series 2026 here on Saturday.

The players will have to quickly forget the disappointment of missing out on the knockout stage of the continental showpiece and motivate themselves ahead of the four-team friendly tournament.

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Since there are only four teams in the tournament, Saturday’s match is a virtual semi-final.

Australia and Malawi play the other semi-final, also on Saturday.

The semi-final winners and losers will clash in the final and the third-place play-off respectively on April 15.

Crispin Chettri, who is once again at the helm of affairs as the head coach of the Blue Tigresses, said, “The idea is to start building for the future already, for the next AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2029 qualifiers and the 2031 World Cup qualifiers. We have to begin now.”

Chettri led India to qualification for the Asian Cup last year, and was assistant to Amelia Valverde during the final tournament.

“I think the expectation from everyone was that we should at least reach the quarter-finals from the group stage. Even the players had that expectation, so I think they are a little low at the moment,” said Chettri.

India arrived in Nairobi on April 7 and have had two training sessions so far, with another to go on Friday before the game against the hosts.

“Mentally, the players are much more prepared now. When they take to the training pitch, they are only focused on preparing for the next game,” Chettri added.

Chettri had named a 22-member squad for the tournament scheduled during the April FIFA International Women’s Match Window.