The Indian women's cricket team pulled off a magnificent win over South Africa in the ODI World Cup Final. India were the favourites, but this win didn't come easily.
It was hard fought.
The South Africans, also looking for their maiden title, weren't giving up easily — especially Captain Laura Wolvaardt, who made a superb century, but it went in vain.
For women's cricket in India, this was a breakthrough moment. Remember, this was the third time India had entered the final of the ODI World Cup.
In 2005, they had been beaten by Australia. In 2017, they were beaten by England. And it seemed that this title was elusive — any world title, in fact. India had also reached the T20 World Cup Final in 2020, where they lost against Australia.
So, it seemed like there was a hoodoo about how India would win or not win the tournament, and it looked like the ineptitude of taking the final step towards glory would elude the Indian team again when they had a mid-tournament stutter.
India lost three matches on the trot — to South Africa, Australia and England — and it seemed that old demons had come back into play.
India emerged from the mid-tournament crisis in great style, and they went on to reach the knockouts and beat Australia in a pulsating semifinal, chasing a record score — and that’s when the trajectory of India's campaign changed.
The Tough Australian Challenge
Beating Australia was the big jump, and the big obstacle had been conquered. Australia had long been the nemesis of the Indian team.
Every time there was a major tournament, India would do well against other teams but succumb to the Australians. The skill, expertise, and never-say-die attitude of the Australians always seemed to get the better of the Indian team.
When Australia had posted a total of 338 in the semifinal, this time too, it seemed India wouldn’t make the cut. But that run chase completely changed the perspective. It eliminated Australia from the equation and brought in South Africa.
Remember, South Africa had beaten India in the group stage. So, they weren’t easy pickings, but they also weren’t opponents India would have been overly apprehensive about facing in the final.
Having said that, a final is a final. The South Africans did extremely well. On paper and in terms of balance, composition, and talent, India was a better team.
So, it was up to the Indians to make the play and go on to clinch the title. The South Africans were the underdogs — in that sense, the pressure was less on them than on the Indian team.
And the Indians performed as expected, making 298 at the DY Patil Stadium.
It seemed that they were 20–30 runs short, but given the bowling resources they have — especially the spinners — it proved to be adequate.
The All-Round Performances of Deepti, Shafali And Others
Wolvaardt apart, the South Africans lacked the depth and muscle that the Indian team had. And then you need some penny to drop at certain places for any team to win. You need that little stroke of luck or a stroke of genius.
That came through Harmanpreet Kaur's decision to bring in Shafali Verma to bowl. Shafali, a part-time bowler, picked up two wickets in two overs and just changed the trajectory of the game.
Deepti Sharma, a renowned, experienced, and seasoned all-rounder, came in and took a fifer.
This is the kind of quality the Indian team possesses, which is what led India to win.
Batting prowess apart — Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur — India's batting strength from the lower order was key to India's success, not just in the final and the semifinal against Australia, but in a few matches earlier as well.
In the final, Deepti made a run-a-ball fifty-eight and then picked up five wickets. Richa Ghosh played some lusty blows — a short cameo, but a very important one.
Ultimately, when you look at the equation — India winning by 52 runs — if you take away the contributions of Deepti, Richa, and some of the other lower-order batters, you'll realise how close this match really was.
First ICC Trophy in the Women's Team Cabinet
This is a breakthrough moment in Indian cricket — not just women's cricket. Apart from what the Indian team has been achieving in the men’s section, now you have an ICC trophy in the cabinet for the women’s section, too.
This achievement is magnificent, and it’s got a lot of gravitas. It’s got a lot of consequences and ramifications.
In my opinion, it's akin to 1983 when Kapil Dev's team beat the mighty West Indies and India won the World Cup — and it just changed the sport in India as well as globally. It left such a deep imprint on the psyche of Indians that cricket catapulted into becoming an obsession and even a religion.
I see something like that happening with women's cricket. The ramifications of this win by Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah, Smriti Mandhana, and the whole lot are going to have a huge impact. It will have huge consequences as far as gender equality in sports is concerned — not just in terms of payments and money earned, but young girls going out in India to try and play sports and achieve that level of excellence that gets them and the country glory.
Architects of India's Maiden World Cup Victory
We have to look at some of the players who did very well in the tournament.
Smriti Mandhana was the second-highest run-scorer in this World Cup edition. Deepti Sharma finished as the highest wicket-taker in the tournament. Jemimah Rodrigues played a brilliant knock in the semifinal against Australia. Harmanpreet Kaur made some really crucial decisions that shaped India’s campaign.
You needed a very calm and calculated approach, and Harmanpreet provided that, apart from playing some very useful knocks.
So, all in all, this was a terrific campaign for the Indian women's team. Winning the ODI World Cup is the pinnacle of this sport. There are other formats, and those are important, but winning this World Cup — which had proved so elusive — has just helped the Indian women's cricket team take a massive step upwards in the echelons of the game.
It's been a 50-plus-year journey for Indian women's cricket from the time they played their first international match in 1976. This five-decade journey has been long, arduous, torturous, and full of hardships — and now they have reached a stage where they are recognised as champions. What can be better than that?