FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup: Senior India captain Ashalata Devi's message to Indian players

No matter how much you plan and prepare, there are certain things in life that cannot be rehearsed. The India Under-17 women’s football team has been preparing vigorously for the last seven months for their date with destiny as the nation gets ready to host its first FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2022. Extensive training has been done to prepare for the unprecedented, multiple exposure trips have been conducted and hours have been spent on the pitch sharpening the skills. The 21 players selected for the tournament will on 11 October become the first Indians to take part in a women’s World Cup at any age level. You can’t fault them if the occasion overwhelms a few. Just in case it does, India senior national woman’s football team Loitongbam Ashalata Devi has a message for the players before the big night.

“As a player, pressure will always be there. It’s obvious to be nervous. It’s important to have these butterflies. When we are nervous, we prepare our best and the focus is just that much better. I have gone through the same age-group levels and it’s never easy to play big games at such a grand level, but it’s important we stick to what we have learned,” Ashalata says. “Have belief in your training, your process, and your skills — it’s the only thing that matters. Don’t play the occasion, play the opposition. We have full belief in you. Playing against big teams only makes us better and these experiences will help you go long way in your careers.” India, who qualified for the World Cup as hosts, are placed in Group A of the 16-team tournament alongside Morocco, US and Brazil. Morocco will also be playing a women’s World Cup for the first time while 2008 runners-up USA and two-time quarter-finalists Brazil are the favourites to qualify from the group. India open their campaign against the 2022 CONCACAF U-17 Champion US on 11 October. It’s impossible to predict results in any sport but the USA are heavy favourites for the opener. However, the important thing for India will be to understand that overall results in three matches will decide their qualification to the quarter-finals, so a setback, if any, before the group stage ends shouldn’t make them lose focus. “No one likes to lose but a defeat is only an opportunity to learn from your mistakes. Winning and losing are part and parcel of the game, even if a setback happens in one of the games, it’s important not to lose sight of the bigger picture. We must assess what went wrong, recover, and go hard again. That’s what is most important in football. One or two results don’t define anyone,” the senior India defender remarks. FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup:  India squad, opponents, streaming — all you need to know Women’s football in India has certainly witnessed progress over the years but there’s no doubt it still has a long way to go to capture the imagination of the country. Ashalata has hopes the World Cup could be the perfect catalyst. “This is a big opportunity for women’s football in India and could lead to positive changes. A lot of people in India are still unaware of women’s football but this women’s World Cup will be broadcast on TV for everyone to watch in our country. We have an opportunity to show the whole nation at what level we are playing. There’s another aspect as well. This World Cup will also inspire the upcoming generation. “When you play matches at the highest level opportunity starts coming our way. Since we played the match against Brazil ahead of the women’s Asian Cup, India players have also been getting the opportunity to play outside the country. Manisha Kalyan and Dangmei Grace are now playing in foreign leagues. These changes and developments happen only after we play against top teams at the highest levels,” she concludes. _Click here to read more FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup stories_ Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.