When India’s women lifted the World Cup trophy in Navi Mumbai, the applause reached far beyond the stadium walls. It echoed through decades of effort, through the struggles of Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Anjum Chopra, and countless pioneers who built the road brick by brick.
The night felt poetic. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana carried the glittering trophy toward the stands, where three legends waited. As the cup passed into Mithali’s hands, she smiled, whispered “thank you,” and held it as if the years had finally come full circle. Beside her, a teary-eyed Jhulan Goswami stood tall, her eyes reflecting satisfaction, pride, and a quiet end to a journey that started in dusty training fields decades ago.
That single moment carried the weight of history — players past and present bound by the same dream. The victory wasn’t only about the final. It was about everything before it — every match played without funding, every train ride taken at dawn, and every boundary hit despite limited recognition. This was more than a trophy. It was an inheritance, returned to its rightful owners.
The Forgotten Pioneers Who Built India’s Women’s Cricket
Before contracts, sponsors, or television cameras, there were pioneers who built everything from scratch. Diana Edulji and Shantha Rangaswamy are among those names often spoken with reverence but rarely celebrated enough.
Rangaswamy, India’s first official captain, once walked miles to college to save bus fare, practicing cricket in between lectures. She led India to its first Test series win in 1976. Diana Edulji, meanwhile, fought for inclusion in boys’ teams in South Bombay. In 1976, she captained India in their first overseas tour — raising travel funds through personal efforts and public appeals.
They stayed in strangers’ homes, shared kits, and trained without pay. The Women’s Cricket Association of India (WCAI), founded in 1973, managed those early tours with limited resources. When India missed the 1988 World Cup due to financial issues, it was those same women who kept the game alive.
By the time the BCCI took charge in 2006, India had already played six World Cups thanks to their persistence. Every modern star — from Mithali to Harmanpreet — stands on their shoulders. Without them, this golden night in 2025 would never have happened.
How Mithali Raj Shaped Her ODI Career and India’s Future?
Mithali Raj didn’t just play ODI cricket — she redefined it for Indian women. Her debut in 1999 came with quiet authority, a century that announced her arrival. Within two years, she was leading India, and her calm leadership became the foundation for every generation that followed.
In 2002, Mithali’s Test double century at the age of 19 set global headlines. But it was her ODI consistency that built India’s reputation. Across 232 matches, she scored 7,805 runs at an average of 50.68, mastering rotation, strike control, and the art of pacing long innings. She played when infrastructure was minimal and contracts didn’t exist, yet her professionalism never wavered.
As captain, she took India to two World Cup finals — 2005 and 2017 — missing glory narrowly both times. Still, her mentorship shaped stars like Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana. Every young batter learned patience, placement, and purpose from her. Even after retirement, her influence lingers in the team’s balance, calmness, and strategy.
Mithali wasn’t just a player; she was the architect of India’s ODI identity — methodical, intelligent, and unshakeable under pressure. The 2025 trophy, finally, feels like her story’s perfect conclusion.
Why Jhulan Goswami Remains India’s Greatest Fast Bowler?
For Jhulan Goswami, the road to greatness started before sunrise. As a teenager from Chakdaha, she would board an early train to Kolkata, carrying dreams bigger than her small-town reality. Those mornings shaped the bowler who became India’s pace icon, like beating Australia.
Over 20 years, Goswami became synonymous with discipline and precision. Her 255 ODI wickets remain the highest in women’s history, earned not through raw speed but through relentless accuracy and intelligence. At 5’11”, she extracted bounce no batter could predict and rhythm that rarely faltered.
But Goswami’s contribution wasn’t limited to wickets. She built the pathway for India’s next generation of pacers. Her mentorship of bowlers like Renuka Singh Thakur and Titas Sadhu continues to pay dividends. She taught them how to bowl with intent, conserve energy, and believe in their own pace.
For a country historically known for spin, Goswami made fast bowling aspirational. She proved that Indian women could dominate with seam, swing, and heart. When the 2025 trophy reached her hands, it wasn’t just gratitude — it was justice. Every ball she ever bowled had finally come back home.
How the 2025 World Cup Became India’s Tribute to History?
This wasn’t just another win — it was a generational reunion. The 2025 final against South Africa became a symbolic bridge between eras. When Harmanpreet Kaur handed the trophy to Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, and Anjum Chopra, the gesture told its own story: “We finished what you started.”
The celebrations reflected that gratitude. Former players wept openly as the current stars bowed before them. Anjum Chopra, who mentored Harmanpreet as a teenager, hugged her with pride, whispering “You’ve done it.” Reema Malhotra joined in with the song “Sadda Haq, Aithe Rakh,” symbolizing years of struggle finally rewarded.
The moment captured the essence of women’s cricket in India — built on sisterhood, sacrifice, and sheer resilience. For Harmanpreet, the emotion was overwhelming. She called Jhulan “my biggest support” and credited Anjum for showing her what leadership looks like.
Every smile, every tear, carried decades of sacrifice. The World Cup trophy wasn’t just silver — it was a mirror reflecting the faces of all who had come before.
What does This Win mean for the Next Generation of Indian Women?
For young girls watching from small towns and cricket camps, this victory is a promise. It tells them they no longer need to dream secretly. They can now openly aspire to wear India’s blue, lift a World Cup, and be celebrated.
The INR 51 crore prize money announced by the BCCI marked a defining shift. It acknowledged not just the current team but those who balanced jobs and cricket decades ago. Players like Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana now represent the present, but the victory’s roots lie deep in history.
As Jemimah Rodrigues wrote on Instagram, “This one’s for those who were before us.” That emotion encapsulates the soul of this triumph. It’s gratitude disguised as glory.
The future of Indian women’s cricket will now thrive on this foundation — where legacy meets opportunity, and sacrifice turns into sustained success. For the next generation, this isn’t the end of a story; it’s the beginning of belief.
The Emotion That United Eras
After the final, Harmanpreet Kaur gathered the press, lifted the trophy, and called forward the journalists who had followed the team for years. Together, they posed for pictures, chanting the same words that filled the stadium earlier — “Thank you.”
It wasn’t just gratitude for coverage; it was acknowledgment of every voice that kept women’s cricket alive when nobody listened. That night, India didn’t just win a World Cup. It united generations in one timeless moment of pride and purpose.
Conclusion
India’s 2025 World Cup victory isn’t a tale of a single team — it’s the culmination of fifty years of courage, conviction, and community. It belongs equally to Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Anjum Chopra, Diana Edulji, and Shantha Rangaswamy, as it does to Harmanpreet Kaur and her champions.
For every boundary hit in Navi Mumbai, there were decades of unseen effort behind it. This triumph closed one chapter but opened another — where women’s cricket in India stands on its own, strong, respected, and unstoppable.
From the broken bats of 1976 to the shining trophy of 2025, the journey has been long. But as Mithali held the cup high, the message was clear — this is not just a win; it’s a thank you to every woman who dared to dream.
