All about the Indian Women's World Cup Victory

In this episode of Takaro Kids, Debkanya covers the historic win by the Indian Women's Cricket team in the ICC World Cup, defeating South Africa by 52 runs to win their first-ever World Cup. Special guest Suprita Das, a sports journalist and author, shares her firsthand experience of the historic event and provides behind-the-scenes insights. Suprita highlights the journey and struggles of the team, emphasizing their determination, the impact of the Women's Premier League, and the overwhelming public support. The conversation covers emotional moments from the match, the team's unity, and their relatable and inspiring nature. The episode concludes with a quiz question about the player of the match in the Women's World Cup and a shoutout to the previous week's quiz winner.

00:00 Introduction and Podcast Overview

00:12 Historic Win by Indian Women's Cricket Team

00:49 Interview with Suprita Das

01:57 Suprita's Experience at the World Cup Final

04:46 Goosebumpy Moments and Celebrations

08:28 Impact of the Women's Premier League

11:18 What The Team Is Like

15:27 Future of Women's Cricket in India

17:49 A Super Fun Fact 

20:00 Quiz and Last Week's Winner!

Follow us on Instagram 

Transcript

0:00

Welcome to Takaro Kids. I'm Debkanya bringing you your weekly podcast to help you understand the events that shape the world around you. Now in this episode, Kiran is not joining us because he's traveling. But trust me, this is going to be a fun one and he's missing out because we are going to be talking all about the incredible win by the Indian Women's Cricket team in the World Cup. Now, you've probably heard already, the Indian Women's Cricket team, they made history by defeating South Africa by 52 runs. They won the first ever Women's World Cup. Now they've reached the finals of other one day matches before, but this is the first time that they've actually brought home the cup and, uh without me talking too much about it, we figured that it's better to go and speak to some experts. Someone who lives, breathes, writes, screams cricket, and that person is a very, very special guest, Suprita Das. Now Suprita is going to give us the entire behind the scenes lowdown. Why is she the best person to do it? Well, Suprita has been a journalist. She used to work with NDTV. She was a sports journalist. She's an author who has written two books. In fact, one of them was on boxing and the other was actually on women's cricket. It's called Free Hit: The Story of Women's Cricket in India. She literally saw history unfurling right in front of her eyes because Suprita was at the DY Patil Stadium. She was working with the ICC on the Women's World Cup. So listen in!

Debkanya 1:35

Welcome to Takaro Kids Suprita!. Thank you so much for joining us on this very, very, very, very, very, very, very special episode.

Suprita 1:44

Thank you so much for having me. How are you?

Debkanya 1:47

I'm very well, and, uh, you are smiling a lot. I'm smiling a lot because we are gonna be talking about something that's, you know, gotten a lot of people super happy, uh, in India. Can you tell us, what you were doing when the Indian women's team actually defeated, South Africa.

Suprita 2:05

firstly, second, November, 2025 is the best day of my life. It rolled into third November because the celebrations went on for so long as it should. Absolutely. So second and third November is the best day of my life. I was actually working on the ICC uh, women's Cricket World Cup. But luckily my last working game was the semi-final game, I was super lucky that actually on the final, which was India versus South Africa, I could be a spectator. But, but I wasn't in one of the stands I did have access to the ground, which means I, I had like better view and, you know, uh, better sounds than most people in the stands. Yeah. So, when the second innings was going on and it was looking like it was really tight because the South African captain Laura Wolvaardt, she'd scored her second century and you know, you were like, oh gosh, should we have had a few more runs on the board? This is getting, everyone's getting super nervous. And everyone was given, I mean, everyone, of course, the players were actually playing the match, but everybody else, which includes commentators were all very senior, former cricketers, you know, and all people on the crew, you know, we were all super excited and everyone was wondering, you know, it's gonna stretch till the end and then it was eight down and then everyone was like, it's gonna happen. It's gonna happen anytime now. You know? whoever was wherever, just ran to whichever was the best position that they needed to be in, you know? Just to, to witness what was going to unfold, to take a picture, to take a video, uh, to just, just soak it all in. So I remember, I, I went to the area, which is very close to sort of the boundary ropes. Uh, that's where we had access. And, uh, when Harmanpreet Kaur, the Indian captain, took that last catch. For half a second I didn't realize that it happened. Okay. And I'm like, oh, everybody's running. Everybody's running and, and going into one, uh, you know, one, one circle. Oh, so it's happened. Okay. Should I take my phone now? Should I be clicking? This has

Debkanya 4:11

What should I do?

Suprita 4:12

what should I do? Should I witness it with my own eyes? Or should I witness it with the eyes of my camera lens? What should I do? At some point, I, I did take out my camera lens and of course, you know, like filmed all of it, but that's where I was. At the stroke of midnight is when it happened. And everyone was like, it's happened, it's happened. It's here, it's home. So just fantastic. Yeah.

Debkanya 4:33

What a moment to be able to witness, you know, even, even people who are watching at home, um, on their television sets and people who are on that at DY Patil watching from the stands. I mean, what an incredible thing to witness. But was that the most goosebumpy moment for you or was there something else?

Suprita 4:51

So everything that happened, you know, after the last catch was taken was amazing. The whole thing is cinema for me.

Debkanya 4:58

Mm.

Suprita 4:59

but if I had to pick two goose bumpy moments, um, so what happened is a point after, you know, the initial celebrations happened, everyone's jumping around, hugging each other. They allowed the, families of all the players to come onto the field, you know, and, and of course, like, you know, make them a part of the celebration. There's this one point where, our Captain Harmanpreet Kaur her family comes on, you know, to the field, and Harman walks up to her father and she jumps onto him. You know, and, uh, it's like a little girl in her daddy's lap, and it is the, it was the sweetest thing ever. It's so goose bumpy. And the second thing, was when the team, the World Cup winning team, actually took the trophy to the former India players, who are now experts, who are now commentators. And they were on their sort of commentary and expert analysis duty. So some of them were on air, you know, in one corner of the ground, but they just ran up. I love how the whole lot of them ran up to Jhulan Goswami Anjum Chopra, Mitali Raj -gave them the World Cup and kept telling them, lift, lift, lift to lift the cup up. That was beautiful, you know, and they all cried and they all hugged it out

Debkanya 6:18

No.

Suprita 6:18

because, uh, second November, 2025 wouldn't have happened, wouldn't have been a dream come true without the contribution of these former players, right? Who, who have walked, the path and made things a little easier for the current, crop. So these two, I think would be my standout moments. Yeah.

Debkanya 6:35

That is, that is really cool. I mean, the fact that they went and they remembered that, Hey, we, we did, we couldn't have been here without. Like you just said. all the work, all the effort that's been put in, it's been a long way. Right. That they've had to travel to get to this point. And Suprita you've been covering this for a while. You wrote Free Hit, you wrote the story of Indian women's cricket, right? And you've seen this evolution happen. What really changed, you know, on Sunday? What changed? What actually made that happen? Made that moment come to life?

Suprita 7:06

I would say two things. One is, this is a group of girls who are very determined. Debkanya. They've been close to a trophy. They've been close to a title for very long.

Debkanya 7:17

Yeah.

Suprita 7:18

they were, you know, if, if you would've seen, uh, the broadcast and of course everything that's on social media, uh, you know, since then, um, I think the hug exchange between Harmanpreet and Smriti was the longest and the tightest, because the two of them together have been a part of the moments when India was almost there, but they had to return as runners up. You know, it happened at 2017. It happened in 2020 again. Uh, so they were almost there and then they finished runners up, and this time they were around Nike opportunity do this in front of home crowds, a packed stadium. Es And especially with this group, uh, you know, that's, that's been together for so long. We don't know. So come what may we just have to put our head down. Forget everything else and just play these two innings. Just tune out of everything else we fought so far to get here, and this is where we are and this is all that matters. So one is of course the, the, the pure grit and the determination of every member in this team whether senior or junior, whether veteran or. You know, just six months into international cricket. That's one. And two, I think what made it happen, Debkanya, is, three years ago the Women's Premier League kicked off. It's three seasons old now and I've been fortunate enough to be a part of all three seasons working with the franchise. That has made a huge difference because. What has happened with the Women's Premier League is two things. One, of course it's given a lot more financial stability to girls, uh, which now means families are like, okay, earlier if I had a doubt that can my daughter take up cricket as a career? if she does, how sustainable is it? How long can she continue to play professional cricket? Those questions, those doubts have little bit, you know, been quashed and families are like, okay, this, this can be, you know, a career for my daughter. That's one. And I think the other thing is, you know, during WPL, all three seasons, we've seen very good crowds. Now, what happens is for players when you play in front of, you know, packed stadiums. Whether it's in tier one cities like a Bangalore Mumbai or a Baroda Lucknow. When you're playing in front of crowds, what happens is that prepares you for international, um, setting, if I want

Debkanya 9:38

Right.

Suprita 9:38

So where

Debkanya 9:39

Hmm.

Suprita 9:39

be that pressure of crowds, which has constantly be to, okay, we are playing at Lords, uh, at a packed Stadium in 2017 final. That pressure got to us. In 2020 we are playing, you know. In a packed Melbourne cricket stadium against Australia, it's home ground for them. We were just not prepared for it. Now we've prepared more to play in front of packed stadiums in front of bigger, so mentally that is, that has made like a huge difference, to these players.

Debkanya 10:08

And hearing your name being chanted and having

Suprita 10:11

Yeah.

Debkanya 10:13

support from everyone around you, it must have been, I mean, just the boost you need, right.

Suprita 10:17

completely. In fact, I'll just, I'll just uh, just mention one thing. You know, there were, and, and DY Patil really has been like, you can call it the home ground for the Indian Women's Cricket team because people have always showed up there. This is a World Cup, it's a World Cup final of course. But even before this, there have been scenarios where it's been a sellout in DY Patil

Debkanya 10:38

Mm.

Suprita 10:38

which is amazing. And on Sunday there were chants for. Every player in the stadium. I don't know how much you know of that was, audible on television, on the, on the telecast, but, it was beautiful. Gosh, gosh Richa Ghosh, Hamari Star, Amanjot when she took that catch, there was something catchy for everybody which was fantastic.

Debkanya 11:02

Like move over Virat Kohli and Bumrah and all the rest. Right. It's Jemima and Shafali and all these names now that you know, people were, were chanting. What are they like? I mean, you've met them, you've spoken to them. What are these girls, these women like?

Suprita 11:18

Simple answer. Relatable, grounded. Um, why I think this win has resonated with so many people. And in the last two, three days I've chatted with, you know, a lot of people, women who are not sports fans,

Debkanya 11:34

Mm.

Suprita 11:35

they've either watched it in the stadium with their families girls who watched it from hostel rooms or you know, people who've just watched it on television. I think everyone has just felt like you know, this team or this team member, she's one of us.

Debkanya 11:51

Yeah.

Suprita 11:52

One of us who's going and, you know, playing and scoring those runs or taking those wickets and catches. So it's relatable irrespective of, you know age, where we come from, what we do, what our backgrounds are. I think why it's been so relatable and everyone has enjoyed and felt like this is our World Cup, and not just of the 16 players in the squad is, is because of that relatability. You know, somewhere, we've all been in situations in life where we've failed, uh, and we've had to pick ourselves up. We've all been in situations where we've been told pick something else. Uh, you know, and, and you've probably said, no, I don't know. I, I want to go with my gut, or I want to, this is what I'm really keen on and I, this is what my heart wants to do out of all my heart. So I think that relatability has sort of therefore made this feel like it's a World Cup win for all of India. Apart from that, I would say, you know, as far as the athletes are concerned, I, I've worked with male athletes with, with men's teams, and I've worked with women's teams as well. And I mean, I have enjoyed myself so much working with the women's team. It's just like, it's very easy to, to work with them. It's very easy to be friends or an elder sister, younger sister, whatever it is. It's a feeling of sisterhood, that's what I felt in the three seasons that I worked with the group that, you know, we're one big group. I was the elder sister, they're all much younger to me. So I was the didi to everybody, which I fully enjoyed.

Debkanya 13:22

Of course.

Suprita 13:23

Like you, you'll always feel like you're a part of the group, you're a part of the team.

Debkanya 13:26

And I love what you said because you know, the first thing you said, of course, was they were so relatable. I remember watching Jemima after, after they defeated Australia, like Australia, right? Like how many did they win in all the World Cups? There was seven time.

Suprita 13:39

Cups.

Debkanya 13:40

Yeah, exactly right. And the, I mean, the tears were flowing. The smile was bright, but it was just so real. It could have been, you know, my neighborhood friend who was just talking about something, which was so, so wonderful to see. Tell me, do these girls, when they go out to play, like, you know that that's some one thing about sports, right? Sports is about so much grit, so much determination, so much effort, and you have to put in the work and it shows on the field. But there's also a lot of superstition, right? There are, there are special things that people do. There are a little routines or there are little lucky charms. Well, did you see anything like that?

Suprita 14:16

So I, I think routines and superstitions are, you know, private. I'm not aware of any lucky charms, but then, but then there are some routines. I, I know some players have a particular music or a particular track that they want to listen in to when they're on the team bus. Uh, others, uh. Always, you know, want to make sure that they've had a chat with their closest one. Um, it could

Debkanya 14:41

Mm.

Suprita 14:41

a coach, it could be a family member. Jemi for example, every match day because her father has also coached her, you know, from the time she was little. Um, so one match day routine. Uh, I remember she, she spoke with me on a podcast a year ago where she sent her match day at the start. They pray together, uh, on a match day, you know, and after the match is done, irrespective of how she's done that day, and whether the team has won or lost, uh, the first call and the conversation will always happen with her dad. Then dad will give the feedback what went right, what went wrong, but it starts with a prayer, with her family, and then ends with that. So, so everyone has their little things that keeps them going. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. But then, um. It's a match. It's your job. We all like our routines and they're no different.

Debkanya 15:27

Do you think more kids will now start playing more?

Suprita 15:32

Yeah, I mean, I, I hope so. If I were to, uh, jog my memory back in 2017 when India actually lost in the final of the World Cup, but when they came back, it was to a heroes welcome and they didn't feel even for one moment that they were actually runners up and there was no trophy that came back with them, you know, from England. But was a big watershed moment and that led to a lot of girls playing. So beautiful story is, you know, when, in 2017 when the Indian team was coming back from England, Jemima was then about 15 or 16 years old, and she and a group of, young cricketers were actually standing at the airport, uh, to welcome the Indian team back. So that's 2017 and cut to 2025 when that knock of hers has taken India to the final, and then India has lifted the cup. So it's inspired a lot of, younger girls, like all the girls will say now that, oh, you know, when we started playing, we were the only girl in the academy or in the school. There are a lot more girls who come for trials these days and we hope that all, all the players say that. While we've been doing so well, that trophy was very important. That trophy was needed. It's like one stamp is needed, you know,

Debkanya 16:45

Hmm.

Suprita 16:45

that stamp is there. Now you have that trophy to show off. Like the players keep saying We wanna see more girls also playing public. Many times you're probably going to see, you know, girls, uh, playing in a private academy, or, or working independently with a coach. We hope this, our dream is that this goes out to all girls of India who want to be in public spaces and also play. We talk about gully cricket in India, right?

Debkanya 17:07

Yeah.

Suprita 17:08

in gullys, you don't see a lot of girls. It's mostly boys who play cricket. So hopefully girls get inspired by this to play gully cricket, feel safe enough to play cricket. And these are the best role models that children can have. It, it's, it's hugely, hugely inspiring for any child.

Debkanya 17:24

I really hope what you're saying is, you know, comes true, which is more kids should be getting out there and playing. You know, back in the day we used to have posters of, you know, when I was growing up, I'm giving away my age. But, you know, posters of Jadeja, for example, you know, you just admired. Those players and a lot of people hoped to be like them, right? And now you're gonna have posters of these women cricketers who've brought home the cup, I think that's going to really make a difference. Before I let you go, Suprita, you've been so awesome, you've been so honest and given us such a great behind the scenes look. Before you go, one fun thing, you could ask this, this team, what would it be?

Suprita 18:03

I'll tell you what. So you know when all the celebrations happened and they got done, in the end they all went towards the pitch and they sang a song. Okay? So this song I think has been in the works and uh, they decided I think about three, four years ago that we are going to win this trophy, call it manifestation or whatever you want to, but they said, we are gonna, only when we lift the World Cup are we going to sing this song. I think I may have been. I just want to read out a couple of the lines 'cause it's,

Debkanya 18:34

Please do.

Suprita 18:36

because it says, um, "Team India, team India, karde sabki hawa tight Team India is here to fight, koi na lega humko Light. Our future is bright." So I want to ask,

Debkanya 18:49

I love it.

Suprita 18:50

it's very cool. I want to ask when I have a moment and when the girls are free, I wanna know who has, who is the lyricist of this song. Who is this poet? Poet? Poetess who has come up with these lines? Yes. This is what I wanna ask them.

Debkanya 19:06

Fantastic. I love it. I mean, well, I mean, it gets the message across and it works and it rhymes. That's all you need right. End of the day.

Suprita 19:13

Correct.

Debkanya 19:15

That's awesome. Thank you. Thank you so much, Suprita, again, I so much enjoyed this conversation with you. I really appreciate you coming on and, you know, telling us everything that you have and, uh, yeah, I hope like you that we will see a lot, many more wins and maybe you can come back and tell us more.

Suprita 19:32

I hope so too. Fingers crossed. May

Debkanya 19:34

Fingers crossed.

Suprita 19:35

the beginning. Thank you so much for having me.

19:37

Now, Wasn't that so cool. To everyone listening remember- every big win starts with small steps, right? Practice, teamwork, and a whole lot of heart, and that's what this cricket team has shown us. Now, if you love this episode, do remember to share it with someone who loves sports or loves cricket in general, or share it with someone who just loves keeping up to date with what's happening in the world. Now. Next up, we are not going to end this episode without our quiz question. Our quiz question for this week's episode of Takaro Kids is: who was the player of the match in the Women's World Cup. Now, if you watched you, this is probably really, really easy for you. I'm gonna give you options as always. Option one, was it Jemima Rodrigues, was it Shafali Verma, or was it Deepti Sharma, or was it Harmanpreet Kaur, give us your answers. Send it into www.takarokids.com. You can put in your response there, or you can send it to us on Instagram, get an adult to help you DM us, right? And a lucky winner will be selected who will win a gift voucher and a Takaro kids t-shirt. Okay, and it's time to wrap up, but we are not gonna go before announcing our winner of last week's episodes quiz, right? We asked: what do we call hurricanes in India? And the correct answer was sent in by Viraj Malhotra. Congratulations, Viraj, you are our winner for the Takaro quiz question that we asked last week. You will be getting a gift voucher and a Takaro kids T-shirt, so do look out for that. That's it from me on this episode. Goodbye.