India chooses its women's football team for South Asian Games

The Indian Senior Women’s National Team squad has selected its 20 players for the 12th South Asian Games, scheduled starting from February 5 to 15 to be held in Guwahati and Shillong.

The team was finalized after a 14 days National Camp which happened in Shillong from January 17-30.

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Girls to defend hosts India's gold medal in women's football with Bangladesh in their opening encounter before taking on Sri Lanka, Maldives and Nepal.

After the announcement, earlier on Monday head coach of the Indian Women’s National Team Sajid Dar seemed confident and expressed a winning foreseen about the team and how it would be able to defend the South Asian Games football title.

"The girls have been here for a while to acclimatise and the team has shaped up well. I am very hopeful that we will defend the title," Dar said to Telegraph India. “We have with us an able group of players who can go on and win this tournament. At the same time, we respect our opponents and have to take one match at a time”, the Head Couch shares on All India Football Federation official website.

The squad includes veteran footballers Aditi Chauhan, Roshini Devi, Panthoi Chanu as Goalkeepers. Others are Ashalata Devi, Radharani Devi, Manisa Panna, Supriya Routray, Umapati Devi, Dalima Chibber, Bembem Devi, Premi Devi, Sangita Basfore, Margaret Devi, Sasmita Malik, Prameshwori Devi, Sanju, Bala Devi, Dangmei Grace, Kamala Devi, Pyari Xaxa.

Chouhan,who is the first Indian to play for a UK club, said, “Conditions were similar in Shillong and Britain, although the altitude was higher here”.

India won the gold in the last edition of the Games in 2010 in Dhaka where women's football made its debut. We wish luck to the Indian women’s football squad and hope that 2016 witness winning another 12th South Asian Games gold medal.

Telegraph India / The Shillong Times / India Times