Jemimah Rodrigues at the heart of Indian women’s cricket’s evolution

For decades, the Indian women’s team could not cross the final hurdle in the World Cup. After two failed attempts, the Women in Blue were waiting for the big break, and the moment came at the DY Patil Stadium when the hosts emulated the men’s team feat in 2011 to become third-time lucky.

Harmanpreet Kaur’s team, much before winning the final, raised the fans’ expectations when Jemimah Rodrigues led a spirited chase to shock the seven-time champions in the semi-final at the same venue.

Chasing a stiff target of 339, India lost both openers early. Despite this setback, the 25-year-old showcased her real mettle by steadying the innings, forming a crucial partnership with her skipper, and eventually leading the chase with an unbeaten 127. A huge statement by Rodrigues, who was dropped for the group game against England.

The celebrations after crossing the target said it all. The monkey was off the back. A 47-year wait was close to reality, and they duly defeated South Africa by 52 runs to claim the prestigious trophy, a landmark moment in Indian women’s cricket.

The win has come after years of hard work and meticulous planning under coach Amol Muzumdar. The last five years have seen women’s cricket grow in popularity, and the Women’s Premier League, founded in 2022, proved to be the game-changer.

Similar to the men’s team winning the 50-over World Cup three years after the start of the Indian Premier League, the Indian women’s team followed a similar path. Their final, occurring three years after the Women’s Premier League began, was watched by 92 million viewers, equalling the Men’s Twenty20 World Cup win in 2024.

The biggest difference this time around is the self-belief. Just a year ago, the Indian team was not at its best against the Australians in the Group A match at Sharjah and lost a chance to be in the semi-finals.

“Even though we lost three back-to-back games, we knew we had something special to turn things around. We stayed positive and knew what we had to do. Everyone was so involved, they were there day and night, and this team deserves to be there,” Harmanpreet said during the prize presentation.

India had many match-winners like Player of the tournament Deepti Sharma, Player of the Final Shafali Verma, who came into the side after an injury cut short Pratika Rawal’s stunning show.

The Delhi Capitals opener turned the final in India’s favour with the ball and the bat, while the opening partnership of Rawal and Smriti Mandhana set the tone in the earlier matches.

“Every time, after every World Cup, we were always discussing crossing that line. In the last two years, Amol sir was with the team, and he was always telling us to come up with something special, and to keep preparing for the big occasion,” the elated skipper added.

Backed by the triumph, Indian women are flying high, leading 2-0 against Sri Lanka in the Twenty20 series with the third of the five-match series in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday.

The World Cup triumph and the Women’s Premier League will be the catalyst that will spur the growth of the game among the young girls in the country. Gone are the days when Indian women had to play in empty stadiums. Now the stands are filled with cheers, matching the men’s game.

Now, more young women will aspire to emulate the Kaurs, Mandhanas, and Deepti Sharmas. The big money in the WPL will add more rags-to-riches stories in Indian cricket. It’s just the beginning of the Indian women’s cricket revolution.

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