Veteran striker and former captain Bala Devi was on Sunday included in the 22-member Indian women’s football team for the Asian Games scheduled in Hangzhou, China, from September 23 to October 8.
The women’s football competition at the Asian Games will feature 17 teams divided into five groups. Groups A, B and C will have three teams each, while Groups D and E will have four teams. The five group winners and three best second-placed teams will qualify for the quarter-finals.
The India women’s football team, ranked 61st in the FIFA Rankings, is placed in Group B alongside Chinese Taipei (ranked 38th) and Thailand (ranked 46th).
Bala Devi, returned to the national team after a four-year gap. The 33-year-old who has scored 36 goals in 46 matches for
the national team, last represented India at the 2019 South Asian Games held in Kathmandu.
She joined Scottish club Rangers in 2020 to become the first Indian women’s footballer to sign a professional contract with an European club. Her Scottish venture, however, was cut short after an ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) injury.
After surgery and rehabilitation, She returned earlier this year at a national camp in Chennai. She also played for Odisha FC in
the Indian Women’s League (IWL) 2022-23 and emerged as her team’s top scorer with six goals.
The women’s football tournament at the Asian Games is contested by senior national teams, with no age restrictions. Indian
women’s football team had competed twice at the Asian Games – Bangkok 1998 and Incheon 2014.
The team was announced by Head coach Thomas Dennerby Goalkeepers: Shreya Hooda, Sowmiya Narayanasamy, Panthoi Chanu Defenders: Ashalata Devi, Sweety Devi, Ritu Rani, Dalima Chhibber, Astam Oraon, Sanju, Ranjana Chanu Midfielders: Sangita Basfore, Priyangka Devi, Indumathi Kathiresan, Anju Tamang, Soumya Guguloth, Dangmei Grace Forwards: Pyari Xaxa, Jyoti, Renu, Bala Devi, Manisha, Sandhiya Ranganathan.