Women in Blue make history
A billion dreams flowered, and the packed D Y stadium in Navi Mumbai was drenched in tears of joy as the women in blue finally capped the journey of belief with a spectacular win of the ICC Women’s World Cup, beating South Africa in an exciting final. It was around midnight that the rain-forced delay contest ended, but nobody was complaining, for such was the moment, something Indian cricket had been eagerly waiting for. After failing twice earlier in 2005 and 2017 to capture this grand reward after being at a grabbing distance, the Indian women made it third time lucky and appropriately in the city of cricket, that is Mumbai! So, the women have finally won an ICC trophy, and who knows, this could just be the beginning of another journey of not just self-belief but excellence. If this big show cannot inspire women to take to sports in a big way, not just cricket, then what else can!
It is just as well that all this has happened when sports in general in the country are slowly but surely breaking down self-enforced hackles and demanding attention. The Government too has not been lagging behind. The success in getting the hosting rights of the next Commonwealth Games to be held in 2030 (a formal announcement is expected later this month from the Commonwealth Sports’ General Assembly) is a means to inspire Indian sportspersons, and there is the big dream of getting the 2036 Olympics too. Yet for all this, cricket is one sport that has always been ahead of others, thanks to the way it has been administered and the equally impactful way by the persons who matter, the players have shown the world. Yes, it has been men’s cricket all the way, and surely the best in cricket is always aligned with the men’s performances. Hopefully, that perception will change with women now proving that when given opportunities and encouragement when provided, they too can rise and achieve and make as they did in Navi Mumbai, a spectacular midnight show of brightness!
It was again the BCCI which had shown the way to boost women’s cricket. Three years ago, the Board had, by a unanimous decision, decided on pay parity for men and women cricketers, a move that had the global sporting community sit up in wonder. India thus became a major cricketing nation to implement something that had often been debated but never reached the implementation stage. Critics were not amused, wondering how the women players could inspire the commercial interests. Now, in 2025, right in home conditions, many unanswered questions were given fitting replies and how! But all this happened not without hiccups. The Indian show in the league phase was anything but encouraging. Defeats seemed to stare everywhere. Until the semi-final swung things around with such an unbelievable turn of fortunes that women’s cricket in India had hardly witnessed till then.
Jemimah Rodrigues is the name that has entered every sports lover’s home in a flash. The bold and gritty Mumbai player proved such a standout performer with an unbeaten century to boot, which helped India bring down the reigning champion Australia! An unbeaten run of 15 matches in the women’s ODI World Cup, spanning the 2022 and 2025 editions, ended in the semi-final for the Australians with that India win. Jemimah instantly became a household name. For someone who had been dropped earlier in the tournament to come back and make a statement like what she did, this former U-17 hockey player had simply outdone herself. From a starry-eyed spectator who had been moved by Indian men’s 2011 ODI World Cup win, Jemimah’s dreams of doing something heroic had perhaps sunk into her mind there and then. The impact of the semi-final win had to be seen with advertisers splashing blue on Newspaper pages the next day, so to say, to honour the women in blue! The celebrations even then seemed so early until the final proved the Indian women had meant business. Even the wet weather prior to the final did not whittle down the Indian spirits, and the rest is history.
The landmark happening in Mumbai notwithstanding, it must be said, the rise or better still, the Indian abilities had begun to get noticed right from 2005 when the women for the first time came to the title round. The Mithali Raj-led side did suffer a crushing defeat to Australia, but by the time India was ready for another conquest in 2017, the side was no longer looked upon as just another participant but a contender. England then had managed a close win then but the young Indian squad, then comprising future stars like Smriti Mandhana and the current skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, had given enough notice of their capabilities. It was thus in many ways a work in progress then that finally proved its inspiring worth now.
In the end, what matters is the impact that this big moment in women’s cricket will have on women’s sports in India. Perhaps none said it better than the ICC chairman Jay Shah, the former BCCI chief, in whose time the big changes in women’s cricket came about, said it right when he tweeted that while the grit and skills of players were undeniable, without vision and support, the journey would have been different. For now, let's savour this big moment while pouring accolades on the gritty and gutsy women in blue!