Indonesian U18 women's national basketball team captain Joanne Giovanni emphasized the importance of strengthening her competitive mentality to prepare her team for the upcoming FIBA U18 Women's Asia Cup 2026 in Bangkok, Thailand.
According to Joanne, Indonesia is in a challenging group alongside India, Thailand, and Oman. Therefore, she urged her teammates to remain focused and give their all to represent Indonesia.
"What's important is that I asked the players, so the important thing is to just fight ," said Joanne during a training session in South Tangerang, Tuesday.
Indonesia is in Group A alongside India, Thailand, and Oman. Group B includes Samoa, the Cook Islands, Lebanon, and Kazakhstan.
Joanne said India and Thailand are the opponents to watch out for. Her experience facing India in the FIBA U16 Women's Asia Cup provided valuable lessons for the team to better prepare for their opponents' play.
"They were so high, and they couldn't control the ball, but they managed to get it in. They were also able to read our system, so we couldn't adjust ," said Joanne.
