The two-leg format SAFF Under-20 Women鈥檚 Championship 2025 begins today with defending and four-time champions Bangladesh taking on Sri Lanka in one of the two matches on the opening day at the Bashundhara Kings Arena.
The four-team tournament opener between hosts Bangladesh and Sri Lanka is scheduled to begin at 3:00pm before Bhutan take on Nepal in the other match starting at 7:00pm. T-sports will televise both the matches live from the venue.
Coach Peter Butler, who has chosen eight players from Bangladesh鈥檚 AFC Women鈥檚 Asian Cup qualifying team, expressed optimism about the team鈥檚 prospects of retaining the title through enhanced performances.
鈥榃e picked up players [from the Asian Cup qualifying team] for our improvement. It鈥檚 not our concern whether the other teams picked up senior players or not,鈥� said Butler in the pre-tournament press conference on Thursday.聽
Bangladesh captain Afeida Khandaker displayed a blend of confidence and humility.
鈥榃e qualified for the Asian Cup, but that doesn鈥檛 mean we will take SAFF opponents lightly... We want to progress match by match and win each game to stay at the top of the table,鈥� said 18-year-old defender Afeida, who captained Bangladesh鈥檚 senior team during AFC Women鈥檚 Asian Cup qualification.
Sri Lanka coach Srinatha Kumara acknowledged that his team is not strong enough to play a high-pressing game against Bangladesh.
鈥榃e have come here to gain experience from this tournament. The truth is, we are not capable of playing an attacking game,鈥� said Srinatha.
In their subsequent matches, Bangladesh will face Nepal on July 13 and 21; Bhutan on July 15 and 17, before meeting Sri Lanka again on July 19. After facing each other twice, the top team will be crowned champions.
Bhutan coach Tanka Maya Ghalley also hoped to gain experience from this tournament, while Nepal coach Yam Gurung expressed confidence to face the challenge from Bangladesh.
鈥業 respect all the teams鈥� and we鈥檙e ready for the challenge鈥� It would be fun to beat Bangladesh in Bangladesh,鈥� said the Nepal coach.
