India, ranked 69th in the world and fresh from their AFC Asian Cup outing (finished fourth in Group C), will kick-off their South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Women’s Championship campaign against minnows Maldives, ranked 167th, at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium here on Monday.

Speaking to the media on Sunday, India coach Crispin Chettri said that his girls have not had enough time to train. “While everyone wants us to win the SAFF championship, it’s more important to develop as a footballing nation and become a regular participant at the AFC Asian Cup. The Indian Women’s League (IWL) concluded recently and while our players are in good shape, we’ve had no time to train for this tournament,” said Chettri.