Bangladesh is not taking their ‘routine’ match against Turkmenistan lightly.
After qualifying for the Women’s Asian Cup main event for the first time and making history, how did Afida, Rituporna, and the team celebrate? Defender Shiuli Azim shared that they haven’t let loose just yet. The whole team is waiting to celebrate properly after the Turkmenistan match.
Bangladesh will face Turkmenistan on Saturday in the Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers. Having secured their spot in the main event with wins over Bahrain and Myanmar, this upcoming game is now about maintaining their record.
However, Shiuli and her teammates are eager to finish the qualifiers with a perfect record. The defender also revealed something interesting — just by looking at their group, they felt confident something good was possible.
“When we saw our group, our goal was clear: if everyone wanted it with all their heart and played their best, we could qualify. We still have one match left. That’s why we haven’t celebrated fully yet. After the last match, we will celebrate wholeheartedly.”
The team didn’t practice on the field on Thursday but spent time stretching and recovering in the swimming pool. Shiuli reiterated that while they haven’t celebrated wildly yet, team manager Mahbubur Rahman Litu confirmed the players are in great spirits, thrilled with their achievement.
“Alhamdulillah, our girls are doing very well and are in a good mood. We had an important match yesterday, so today we focused on recovery with stretching and swimming.”
“Qualifying is a reward for the long journey and hard work the girls have put in. They have made history. We have one more match left and we are taking it seriously. We hope our girls will perform even better ahead.”
