At exactly 00:00, at the stroke of midnight, Harmanpreet Kaur held on to the catch of Nadine de Klerk; a moment now etched in cricketing glory. A rain-delayed start ensured that the match went late into the night. Despite the grim routine of a Monday morning, the Mumbai crowd stayed back at the D.Y Patil stadium to support the team and so did the rest of the nation. Celebrations continued for hours, after all, for the first time in 14 years, the ODI silverware had returned to India.
The next morning, a wave of warmth took over social media and stories of the 11 players who brought the World Cup dream to fruition. From videos of Renuka Singh Thakur’s mother celebrating in her village, to stories of how Shafali Verma had to cut her hair so she could pursue cricket. From reels of Amanjot Kaur’s father in tears to Deepti Sharma’s mother celebrating in her room.
One story that truly stood out was Amanjot’s. She began her sporting journey as a hockey player before finding her calling in cricket. Born into a humble household, where her father worked as a carpenter, Amanjot’s first bat was one he crafted himself, unaware that one day, his daughter would go on to carve the dreams of millions of Indians still waiting for that elusive World Cup win.
Another story that caught headlines was of Renuka, whose late father dreamed of seeing her in the Indian jersey. The pace bowler grew up playing cricket with makeshift wooden bats and a cloth ball and always had a passion for the sport.
The ever-aggressive Shafali Verma from Rohtak would cut her hair short so that she could play cricket in boys’ matches. A player that wasn’t even in the reserves of the World Cup squad to begin with, but won the ‘Player of the Match’ award in the most important match of the campaign—the final.
These stories remind us that it really does take a village to build greatness. It’s never just the players you see on the screen, but the families, friends, and coaches who stand behind them, grinding with them every day, carrying their worries so that they can chase a dream. Like Amanjot’s father not telling her that grandmother was unwell during the World Cup, so that she could stay focused. Or the coach who first spotted Deepti Sharma’s talent when she threw down the stumps from 50 metres away. These moments, small, selfless and often unseen are what shape champions. This World Cup win like many others wasn’t shaped by the players alone but by every person who believed in them, every shoulder that held the weight and the village that dared to dream with them.