SAFF Women's Championship 2026: Updated points table, most goals after India vs Bangladesh
India beat defending champions Bangladesh 3-0 in dominant display
India finished off their group stage of the SAFF Women’s Championship 2026 in style with a 3-0 win over Bangladesh at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Goa on Sunday (31 May 2026).
The Blue Tigresses started off the game in commanding fashion, dominating the early stages of the match to put the visitors under threat. Indian forward Pyari Xaxa was handed a couple of big chances in the early stages of the game, but she couldn’t capitalize them.
However, the Indian side kept pushing for the opener and were actually able too find it just after the half-hour mark.
It was, indeed, Pyari Xaxa to give India the lead at the 36th minute, when she took on a pass pretty well before pivoting with a crisp finish past the Bangladesh goalkeeper.
India dominated the majority of the possession in the first half, going into the break with the upper hand against the defending champions.
Bangladesh started to put more pressure on the hosts after the start of the second half, having a few chances in the first phases after the break. However, India kept piling the pressure on their opponents and were able to earn a penalty around the 76th minute mark after Malavika was brought down inside the box.
It was Lynda Kom who took responsibility, slotting the ball into the back of the net to give India a 2-0 lead. The Indian side kept piling on the pressure onto their opponents and it was Malavika who was able to get the goal in stoppage time – taking a nice cross from the right wing to slot the ball past the goalkeeper to seal a 3-0 win for the Blue Tigresses.
A brief look at the points table
With their 3-0 thrashing of Bangladesh, India capped off a perfect group stage in the competition and finished it on top of Group B with six points from two games. The Blue Tigresses had won their first match against Maldives with a 11-0 thrashing, as they are yet to concede a goal in the tournament.
Bangladesh might’ve lost this match against India, but they have also progressed to the semi-finals after having won their match against Maldives by a 4-2 margin as well. Bangladesh will now be facing Nepal (who topped Group A) in the semi-final, while India will face Bhutan in the other semi-final clash.
When it comes to Maldives, they have been knocked out of the tournament after having conceded 15 goals in their two matches.
Aveka Singh remains the top-scorer of the SAFF Women’s Championship 2026 because of her four-goal haul against Maldives, while Pyari Xaxa was able to move onto two goals with her goal against Bangladesh tonight.
Top goalscorers after India vs Bangladesh
- Aveka Singh (India): 4 goals
- Pema Choden Tshering (Nepal): 3 goals
- Karishma Shirvoikar (India): 2 goals
- Priyangka Devi (India): 2 goals
- Pyari Xaxa (India): 2 goals
Who is the leading goalscorer in SAFF Women’s Championship 2026 so far?
Aveka Singh currently leads the goalscoring chart with 4 goals to her name.
Who are the next opponent of India in SAFF Women’s Championship?
India will now face Bhutan in the semifinal of the tournament.
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Uttiyo is a sports journalist who has been covering football since 2016. He is an avid football enthusiast who spends hours either watching the beautiful game or writing about it. He has covered various tournaments for Khel Now, such as the FIFA U17 World Cup, ISL, I-League & AFC Champions League.