India are still in contention for a quarter-finals spot at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 despite losing 11-0 to Japan in a group game. Here’s how they do it in their match against Chinese Taipei.
Indian women’s football team could still qualify for the quarter-finals of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 despite suffering an 11-0 defeat to Japan in their second Group C game. India take on Chinese Taipei in their last group stage match on Tuesday (10 March) in Parramatta.
India are at the bottom of the four-team group, having lost to Vietnam and Japan, but as rankings in AFC competitions groups are based on head-to-head records, India still have chance to qualify for the first-ever FIFA World Cup.
How can India reach AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 quarterfinals?
The equation is simple for India. Japan need to beat Vietnam and the Blue Tigresses need to beat Chinese Taipei by a 2-0 margin to finish second in their group and qualify for the quarter-finals, where they could face China in Perth on Saturday.
Now you may wonder how that is possible, considering
India lost to Japan by 11-0. But as mentioned earlier, the head-to-head records will be counted to decide the final classification and if Japan beat Vietnam and India win 2-0 against Chinese Taipei, then all three teams – Vietnam, India and Chinese Taipei – will finish on three points each.
In such a scenario, the goal difference from matches between only these three teams will be considered. As India lost 2-1 to Vietnam, they would end the group stage with three goals scored and one conceded in games against Vietnam and Chinese Taipei.
Vietnam would finish third with two goals scored and conceded two, while Chinese Taipei would finish at the bottom, having scored one and conceded two.
What If Japan beat Vietnam?
In such a scenario, Vietnam will finish second in the group and qualify for the quarter-finals, but India will finish third if they beat Chinese Taipei. India can still qualify for the quarter-finals if they finish among the two best third-placed teams from the three groups.
Uzbekistan, however, have already confirmed one spot as one of the best third-placed teams, and the Philippines are also close after beating Iran 2-0. This means India must definitely beat Chinese Taipei 2-0 to have any chance.
The India vs Chinese Taipei football match will be played from 2.30 PM IST on Tuesday (10 March).
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