Zahra Naqiyyah believes Indonesia can become a powerhouse in Asian women’s football with proper management. (AFP pic)JAKARTA: Seven years after Covid-19 put the brakes on Indonesia's new women's football league, Zahra Naqiyyah will finally return to the field with "high hopes" for the women's game in the country.

Sunday's matches in the Indonesia Women's League will be the first since 2019 and a new chapter for women's football in the Muslim-majority country of 290 million people.

"I really believe that if Indonesia's women's football is properly managed we can become a powerhouse in Asia," Zahra told AFP at a training session in Bekasi city, east of Jakarta.

"I have high hopes for women's football in Indonesia," she added, wearing a black hijab and the turquoise jersey of her club, Garudayaksa Women.