Malawi are in pole position to qualify for the the 2026 Morocco Women Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) quarterfinals after beating Egypt 3-1 in their second Group C match on Saturday.
The victory follows a resounding 3-2 triumph over Nigeria in their opening match on Tuesday.
However, Group C is wide open to three teams with last matches to decide as 10-time champions Nigeria edged Zambia 1-0 to revive their campaign.
Malawi continued their impressive run after taking a two-goal lead at half time recess with goals from Faith Chimzimu in the 35th minute and Rose Kabzere in the 45th minute.
The Scorchers were dealt a blow after defender Rose Alufandika was shown a red card six minutes into the second half. However, they dug deep to keep the Egyptian Cleopatra at bay.
US-based Temwa Chawinga added the icing on the cake with the third goal in the 69th minute to take her tally to three, but a minute later Egypt’s Eman Hassan reduced the margin to 3-1.
Scorchers had scored the fourth goal on the stroke of the match, but Video-Assisted Referee rule it out.
France-based Kabzere was befittingly named Player of the Match for providing an assist and scoring a goal.
Malawi face rivals Zambia and need to settle for at least a draw or avoid a thorough defeat while hoping Egypt will manage to stop Nigeria to qualify for the quarterfinals.
