India aim to keep up momentum against Bangladesh in SAFF U19 Women’s Championship

India began their SAFF U19 Women’s Championship campaign on a positive note

India faces the biggest challenge of their 2026 SAFF U19 Women’s Championship when they face off against an in-form Bangladesh side at the Pokhara Rangsala stadium on Monday, 2 February (2026).

This battle is likely to be the decider for which team takes control and finishes on top of the group stages, with both sides heavy favourites to win the championship.

The Stakes

Bangladesh U19

The Bangladesh U19 women’s team are the current defending champions of the SAFF U19 Women’s Championship, and they have had a dominant start to the 2026 edition. The Bangladesh side picked up a resounding 12-0 win over Bhutan U19 Women’s team in their opening game, asserting themselves as heavy favorites to win the title. However, Peter Butler’s side will face arguably their toughest test of the tournament so far against a sturdy India side.

They will need to be brave and decisive in the key areas of the pitch, being defensively strong and also dominant on the offensive side to be able to guide themselves to a compelling win. A win for Bangladesh will definitely raise their momentum to win the tournament, but a loss could be a setback to those hopes.

India U19

The India U19 women’s team were able to get a hard-fought win over hosts Nepal in their opening game of the SAFF U19 Women’s Championship, but the real challenge pertains to the next few matches for Pamela Conti’s side. She was able to help them grind their wy to a narrow 1-0 win over Nepal, but the India U19 women’s side will need to significantly pick up their performances in the upcoming match.

They need to be at their best defensively, being sturdy with their man-marking and in winning duels to be able to frustrate their opponents. Conti also needs her players to be clinical in finishing off whatever chances come their way for them to be able to get a positive result. A win for the India U19 side can validate signs of progress under Conti, but a crushing loss can be a major blow at this stage of the tournament.

Team News

Peter Butler should have a fully-fit squad available at his disposal for the upcoming match.

Pamela Conti was also fortunate to see none of her players pick up any injuries in the last game.

Head-to-Head Record

Matches Played – 11

Bangladesh U19 wins – 5

India U19 wins – 3

Draws – 3

Predicted Lineups

Bangladesh U19 (4-2-3-1)

Yearzan Begum (GK), Arpita Biswas, Surovi Arfin, Joynob Rita, Puja Das, Munki Akhter, Kranuching Marma, Sauravi Prity, Alpi Akter, Mamoni Chakma, Sree Trishna Rani

India U19 (4-2-3-1)

Munni (GK), Elibazed Lakra, Taniya Devi, Abhista Basnett, Alva Devi, Divyani Linda, Anukshka Kumari, Thanda Baskey, Redima Chingkhamayum, Valaina Fernandes, Pearl Fernandes

Players to Watch

Munki Akhter (Bangladesh U19)

Munki Akhter has established herself as the rising star of the Bangladesh Women’s Football scene with some impressive performances for club and country. She played a key role in helping Bangladesh U19 win the SAFF U20 Women’s Championship in 2025 and has had a brilliant start to the 2026 edition as well.

Akhter scored four goals against Bhutan, establishing herself as a golden boot contender and she will look to maintain her unstoppable momentum against India U19. The midfielder will aim to use her clever movement and link-up play to march her side forward, but she’ll also need to be clinical with her final product to keep the goals coming for Bangladesh U19 and help them get a big win over India U19.

Pearl Fernandes (India U19)

Pearl Fernandes has been able to continue her good work with the India U19 women’s team with a strong start to the SAFF U19 Women’s Championship, scoring the winning goal in their recent success against Nepal. The vibrant young forward, who also scored a key goal against Kyrgyzstan in the 2026 AFC U17 Women’s Championship qualifiers last year, has continued her ascend into a decisive forward under Pamela Conti.

Fernandes will look to torment the Bangladesh defenders with her clever movement into the decisive areas and also being smart with her position. Pearl will also look to be ruthless with her finishing and take her chances perfectly to help her side get a big win over Bangladesh U19 and take a step closer to the title.

Did you know?

• The 2026 edition is the first-ever SAFF U19 Women’s Championship that India are taking part in.
• Munni Akter has scored 10 goals in 13 games for Bangladesh U19 women’s team so far.
• The India U19 women’s side have won eight of their last nine matches.

Telecast Details

The match between the India U19 women’s team and the Bangladesh U19 women’s team will take place on Monday, 2 February (2026). The match will kick off at 11:45 AM IST. It will be shown live on the Sportzworkz YouTube channel.

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