Chawinga sisters put Malawi on brink of Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final

Malawi took a commanding lead over Algeria in the opening half of the first Women’s Africa Cup of Nations 2026 semi-final, with captain Tabitha Chawinga and her younger sister Temwa both scoring to put their side within 45 minutes of a historic final appearance.

The semi-final was the first meeting between the two nations at this stage of the competition, and the opening exchanges were cautious. Algeria were the first team to threaten, with Marine Dafeur, Melissa Bethi and their team-mates looking to impose themselves early and settle the contest quickly.

Malawi, however, defended with discipline and resisted Algeria’s initial pressure. Their collective organisation prevented the Algerians from creating a clear opening, allowing the Malawian side to gradually grow into the match.

The Chawinga sisters then began to influence proceedings. Tabitha, the elder of the two, became increasingly involved in Malawi’s attacking play after already testing Algeria goalkeeper Chloe N’Gazi.

She finally broke the deadlock in the 33rd minute. After a mistake during an attempted defensive clearance, Tabitha tried an acrobatic overhead kick. N’Gazi was unable to stop the effort as the ball struck the crossbar before finding the back of the net.

Algeria’s task became even more difficult after Morgane Belkhiter was sent off, leaving the Vertes with 10 players and creating more space for Malawi to exploit. The numerical disadvantage allowed Malawi to increase the pressure on the Algerian defence.

Temwa Chawinga made the most of the opening. She first struck the crossbar before scoring in added time at the end of the half. Played through behind the defence, the younger Chawinga found herself one-on-one with N’Gazi, went past the goalkeeper and rolled the ball into an empty net.

The second goal gave Malawi a 2-0 advantage and completed a remarkable first-half performance. The team continued to attack with intensity, while Algeria struggled to contain the movement and pace of the Chawinga sisters after losing a player.

Malawi’s aggressive approach also brought a further disciplinary setback. Rose Kadzere was initially shown a yellow card for a tackle on Marine Dafeur inside the Algerian penalty area. Following a VAR review, the decision was changed and Kadzere was sent off.

That dismissal means the teams will resume the second half with the same number of players on the pitch, but the match remains firmly in Malawi’s control. Having established a two-goal lead before the interval, Malawi are now one half away from reaching the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final for the first time.

Algeria must recover quickly and find a way back into the contest if they are to overturn the deficit and keep their hopes of a place in the final alive.