Pathum Thani, April 7: India will take on Chinese Taipei in their final Group C fixture of the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup here on Wednesday, knowing that nothing short of a victory will keep their hopes of reaching the quarter-finals alive.
After defeats in their opening two matches against Japan and Australia, both India and Chinese Taipei find themselves in identical situations, chasing a result that could yet keep their tournament alive.
India’s goal difference of -11 makes things a bit more complicated than Chinese Taipei’s -7.
The Young Tigresses’ hopes of reaching the knockout stage for the first time since 2004 rest on securing a place among the two best third-placed teams across all groups.Their task will be simplified if either the Group A match between Vietnam and Bangladesh on Tuesday or the Group B match between Uzbekistan and Jordan on Wednesday ends in a draw.In that case, the winner of India vs Chinese Taipei will qualify for the quarter-finals, regardless of goal difference. But if there is a winner in both those games, India would need to win by a handsome margin to avoid being the worst-ranked third-placed side in the three groups.
At the moment, the goal differences of the other teams are – Bangladesh (-3), Vietnam (-6), Uzbekistan (-8) and Jordan (-9).Across their first two matches, the Young Tigresses have shown glimpses of their ability, but have also been punished for lapses at key moments. (PTI)
