Indian Women's Cricket: A Journey of Recognition and Consistency

It has been eight weeks since India beat South Africa in Navi Mumbai and lifted their maiden Women’s World Cup title. The world has, arguably, moved on, mostly because there has been more off-field drama in the cricketing world than on-field matches for the champions. Lest we forget, it remains one of the most pivotal moments in Indian cricket history. Hindsight allows you to see how it was something so special that it played out that way because it was truly meant to be, as if a script written for the Women in Blue — the stutters and losses in the group stage, that partnership between Pratika Rawal and Smriti Mandhana against New Zealand, Jemimah Rodrigues’ once-in-a-lifetime knock against Australia, Pratika’s injury and Shafali Verma’s freakish all-round show in the final. Former captain, broadcaster, and analyst Anjum Chopra, who was there at the final, marking the turn of the most glorious chapter of Indian cricket, spoke toNews18 CricketNextaboutthemoment, joining the trophy celebrations, and more. We heard you say ‘finally, finally, finally’ when Harmanpreet took that catch. What was going through your mind? It was just a celebratory moment. It was excitement, it was elation, it was happiness. You know, overflowing happiness. I mean, I don’t even know whether it was overflowing or not because I don’t know how big the can or the bucket was! But it is still so very fresh that I can imagine what I was going through at that time – immense happiness and such a lot of excitement that I was not sure how long it would continue or how to celebrate. When the team invited you and you were there with Mithali and Jhulan… you lifted the trophy, celebrated with everyone. How did that moment feel? A post shared by Anjum Chopra (@anjum_chopra) So the team didn’tinviteus, actually. We were across the ground. The studio was set up across the ground from the pavilion. So when the team celebrated and started their victory lap, I was on the ground, watching them come towards us. I was right across the pavilion. So when they reached the covers area, I was looking at my production team and I was saying, “Yaar, I want to go. I want to go." They said, “Ma’am, we are live on air. What do you mean you want to go?!" Signals were being exchanged. I kept looking at the presenter, and at my production team, and then at the team. It was so quick. Within a matter of 2-3 minutes, they came towards us. This time I said ‘I want to go’. I gave the mic. I said, where do I go? We were actually on air. Jhulan and I were both in the studio. And at that time, what the presenter was saying, what was in our ears, nothing was known. Only the group was in sight. And when thattolicame, we just had to run and dance. Only that atmosphere was there. And there was no need to say anything. So when they came towards us, I automatically got included in that group because someone went ahead of me, someone came behind me, and someone from the support staff came to meet. Then I met other support staff, then the coach, and while running and dancing, I realised I was right in the middle of the entire thing, and the trophy came into my hands. I said, ‘Wah, kya baat hai‘." I looked for the captain because I wanted to lift the trophy, and Harman was standing right behind me. So first, I congratulated her. I didn’t even have time to meet others because everybody was on the move. And then I wanted to lift the trophy with the captain because obviously she is the captain. Whenever I see its video or remember it, it feels like it was just now. That moment, I think, will always be memorable, when we all lifted the trophy together. And as an Indian women’s cricketer, that was our first World Cup. Without getting too much into men’s cricket, R Ashwin said we don’t see this kind of connection with past generations in men’s cricket. Is it the combined struggle that keeps everyone so connected? There are two things in this. One thing is the struggle we saw, or we did. I think that struggle perhaps the present generation also goes through in their own right. The things we struggled for, probably today, those facilities or recognition come more easily. But before us, some generation also, and before them some generation also… so their awareness perhaps isn’t as much to this present generation. Like Shafali Verma, they probably might have hardly seen me play. Or I might not have seen Chandrakanta playing before me, or Purnima Rao. So, you know, I won’t use the word struggle. I will say recognition. Generations before me played, and before them generations played. So if they hadn’t played, hadn’t started, then we also wouldn’t be playing. I think the connect you talk about, the second part is, that connect is there because, you know, when we used to play, we were also good friends. In between, that connection might have gone amiss, but it’s a good thing that the circle still exists. It brings us all to stand at the same platform from where we all started our respective journeys. And we don’t see each other like how the world recognises us, as a broadcaster or a recognised sports person. We see each other as individuals who used to practice in a stadium, probably in Chennai or in Kolkata at 7:00 AM in the morning, running around training as Indian team players. That’s something which probably binds us together. I will give credit again to the captain because she is a very good, humble cricketer. And more importantly, she is a very good human being as well. So, you know, she is well aware of where she started to where she is. She is well aware of everything around. So that translates when you talk to someone. When you celebrate, also. I have seen that translation in the present Indian team. That is why the happiness you saw on our faces, and it kept going. You saw Harmanpreet as a young girl coming into your team. She was the angry match-winner, then someone who was criticised for not being the best tactically, and now she’s here, the first World Cup-winning captain and the face of women’s cricket in India. A word on her growth? From day one till today, I can proudly say that I know she is a match-winner. Probably today I don’t need to remind anybody, she has proven it by holding that World Cup trophy. So I think she was a match winner, is and will always remain. Now, the development will be how she guides this Indian team back to the base and then takes it forward. We have changed tracks now. We have become world champions. But from here on, how the team progresses will be another chapter. It is not just about having one face; it is now about having the game as the biggest face. Stars will come, stars will go, but now whatever we achieve will be the nation’s achievement. What are the next steps for Indian women’s cricket? Where does it go from here to take the next steps, to become more consistent? We won the World Cup. We know what it takes to win. We can fairly argue we were probably not the best team — we lost 3 matches. But you are only remembered as world champions when you have that trophy. We know that very well since 2005, when I played that first final. We should have won then, but we didn’t. So this is probably the ideal way of winning a World Cup. You win some, you lose some, and then you come back, get together and win the title. Now the Indian team knows how to win it. From here on, what the Indian team would do is obviously go back and play more matches, international matches, but at the same time create a bench strength also. It is not only 15 players. The next level will be to have those 18 players, whereby one player gets injured, we have the next one sitting on the bench and those players are challenging each other. And I am not just talking about numbers, I am talking about solid performances and solid competition for those playing 11 spots. So that’s the next step and from here on we will be looking to do that because in the near future, what we play is a T20 World Cup. There are already questions about whether India should change the captain. We spoke to Aakash Chopra and he said let them celebrate. From your experience, when is the right time for such a change? When we talk about transition, whose transition? When we talk about transition, whose transition are we looking for or bringing in? So I don’t believe in that ‘from World Cup to World Cup’ theory, that we should change something every four years. It doesn’t happen like that. In this team, we have debutants, comebacks, and players competing for spots. If we had such people fighting for slots, we wouldn’t need to get somebody from domestic cricket. We had injuries, we needed replacements. I feel there is no need for any changes. What we need to do and strengthen is obviously from here on, you know, make that chain so strong that it cannot be broken. And it will not happen overnight. It will still take a lot of effort. It will still take effort. Now we are world champions. Now, other teams will always want to come back and beat us. So there is no resting on the laurels. WPL has played some role in this revolution. But is this the best time to increase investment in the competition? Add more teams, get more players in? Adding a team is not only dependent on players. It is a financial model. There are a lot of facets — where will we play, how many matches, venues, do we have the window? In the near future, we should have more teams. But is it essential today? It is our product, an Indian product. The pool should become better. International talent will come, but our Indian talent should be enough to compete with the same intensity as the present five teams. The competition has gotten better each season. We have to get our standard to that level where it is just very good. You have played the game, now a commentator. You have seen the whole change starting from the 2000s. What do you think would be the impact of this World Cup on not only cricket but the whole cricket ecosystem in the country? Swipe Left For Next Video The impact is already such that, you know, the number of people following the sport, covering the sport… at any moment I open my social media account, it is only Harman walking from one place to the other in different attire and speaking to the audience. It is only Harman and Harman all the way. The timeline is only flooded with that, which is very nice to see because, you know, there is that space provided to the Indian women’s cricket team, which is heartening to see. And that has already changed, I will say. Because we recognise world champions. We want to, you know, become and remain world champions as well.