Sangita Basfore: India's Asian Cup is just the gateway to FIFA World Cup dreams

At the very start of last year's qualifying campaign, while the immediate objective for the India women's national team was to reach the Asian Cup, Sangita's focus stretched one step further. For her, the Asian Cup was never the destination. It was the gateway to the FIFA Women's World Cup. The Asian Cup, hosted by Australia, will start from March 1 this year and will go on till March 21.

That forward-thinking mindset defined her campaign. And fittingly, when India sealed qualification, powered by Sangita's decisive two-goal performance against Thailand in the final qualifying match, it felt less like the end of a journey and more like the opening of the real mission.

That forward-looking mindset still defines her approach as the Blue Tigresses prepare in Australia, where the team arrived earlier than all competitors to maximise preparation time and settle into unfamiliar conditions. For Sangita, the message inside the squad has remained consistent from the qualifiers to the tournament proper.

"From the start of the Asian Cup qualifiers last year, the whole team have had one thought, which is to qualify for the World Cup. But that is just one step. Right now, our time has come, and our first match is on March 4, so all our focus is on that. If we win that, our confidence will grow, and the same motivation will continue for the rest of the games. Everyone in the team is clear about taking it game by game," said Sangita as per an All India Football Federation (AIFF) press release.

Preparation for this moment has been long and structured. The squad has spent a month and a half together, including a training camp in Turkiye, before travelling Down Under. The sharp change in climate, from winter cold to Australian warmth, made early arrival more than a logistical convenience. It became a competitive necessity.

"It has been very important. We have been together for 45 days. Earlier, we were preparing in Turkey, where it was very cold, but here the weather is completely different, much warmer. So coming early gave us a very good opportunity to adapt. At the start, it was difficult, but now we are getting used to the heat and playing better. So it was a good decision to come early and get time to adjust to the conditions."

Her own role in getting India here remains one of the defining moments of not just the campaign, but Indian football history. The two goals in the decisive qualifier brought headlines, interviews and widespread recognition, but Sangita still frames that night as a collective achievement, rather than a personal breakthrough.

"That was not just my effort, it was the whole team's hard work. If the team had not given me the right passes, maybe I could not have scored any goals. So the credit goes to the entire team, the staff, and all the players. After that, there were many interviews and attention, but for me it was just part of the experience. It was a good moment, and now I just want to keep performing like this for the national team and move forward in my career."

The 29-year-old's belief in India's ability to compete on the big stage had already been visible during the official draw in Sydney last July, where the scale of the tournament first became tangible.

"Even then, we never felt that we could not do it, and that belief is still the same. Whether at the dining table or on the training ground, we always talk about our plan to go step by step. To reach the World Cup, we have to play at least four matches first, so right now the focus is only on the first game."

Alongside tactical preparation and environmental adaptation, the squad have also been adjusting to new leadership under Amelia Valverde. For Sangita, the most important aspect has been the sense of fairness and opportunity across the squad.

"Coach Amelia has been here for over a month now. Every coach has different thoughts about how to treat players and how to make them play. What I like about this coach is that she gives chances to everyone and treats all players equally. That is very good for the team. So far, we have mostly seen things in training, and now we need to show it in matches. The coach is doing her job, preparing us, and now it is up to us to perform on the field."

From dreaming about the World Cup during the qualifiers to delivering the goals that pushed India forward, to now focusing entirely on the game on March 4, Sangita is always present within the context of what comes next. Qualification was never the finish line; it was only a confirmation that the bigger objective is still alive.

- ANI