WAFCON: Chawinga sisters fire Malawi into historic final

WAFCON: Chawinga sisters fire Malawi into historic final

 

RABAT: The Chawinga sisters delivered another dazzling performance as Malawi stunned Algeria 3-1 on Wednesday to reach their first-ever Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) final, completing a remarkable run for one of the tournament’s biggest underdogs.

Captain Tabitha Chawinga scored twice while her younger sister Temwa Chawinga added another as Malawi overcame a spirited Algerian side in Rabat to book a historic place in Sunday’s final.

Ranked 153rd in the world and making their WAFCON debut, Malawi entered the tournament as outsiders but have now swept aside expectations to reach the biggest final in their women’s football history.

Their remarkable achievement is even more striking given that Malawi are ranked 116 places below pre-tournament favourites and record 10-time champions Nigeria, who were eliminated in the quarter-finals.

Malawi took control of the semi-final after Algeria were reduced to 10 players midway through the first half, with Morgane Belkhiter sent off for a last-defender foul.

Tabitha opened the scoring in the 33rd minute with a spectacular overhead kick following a corner before Temwa doubled Malawi’s advantage in first-half stoppage time, rounding goalkeeper Chloe N’Gazi and calmly finishing.

The drama continued moments before the interval when Malawi also went down to 10 players after Rose Kadzere was shown a red card for a studs-up challenge.

Algeria fought back after the break and reduced the deficit in the 60th minute through Ikram Adjabi, raising hopes of a comeback.

But Tabitha extinguished those hopes 16 minutes from time, producing a brilliant solo effort to restore Malawi’s two-goal cushion and complete her brace.

The victory further underlined the extraordinary impact of the Chawinga sisters at the tournament. Temwa, who plays for Kansas City, has now scored five goals, while Tabitha, of French club Lyon, has four.

With Malawi holding firm after Tabitha’s second goal, Algeria could not find another response and will now contest the third-place play-off on Saturday.

Malawi will face either hosts Morocco or Cameroon in Sunday’s final, with the second semi-final scheduled for later Wednesday.

The finalists will also have a huge financial incentive, with a record $2 million prize awaiting the champions.

Malawi’s historic run has already secured them a place at the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil, alongside Algeria, Morocco and Cameroon, who all reached the WAFCON semi-finals.

For the Chawinga sisters and Malawi, however, the biggest prize is now within touching distance: an unprecedented continental title.