The frames from Sunday night were epic. India had just won the ICC Women’s World Cup for the first time, and you could feel the electricity pulsing through the DY Patel Stadium in the videos and images that were flowing from it. Everything about it was goosebumps-inducing for the average Indian sports fan: players racing onto the field to celebrate, Navi Mumbai standing as one to sing along.Hello“, The Indian captain performs bhangra before lifting the trophy.
However, there was one frame that stood out a bit above the rest. It was a quiet moment amidst the cacophony and joy, before the presentation ceremony. While the South African team waited, devastated, for the stage to be set, the Indians came forward to console and congratulate each of them. That’s when the camera panned to Radha Yadav and Jemima Rodriguez hugging Marizan Kapp tightly.
What does a family look like? ❤️ pic.twitter.com/toTCTWdQDK
– Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) November 2, 2025
That image, of the three Delhi Capitals members burying their faces in each other’s shoulders, captured the essence of the win. In an increasingly exclusionary, divided and hyper-competitive world, there was a rare – and unique – measure of prosperity and generosity in India’s win. The victory was written by the Indian team but shared with the wider community that has taken them this far. Pioneers, journalists, fans, celebrities, and even their opponents in the final: everyone was invited to be part of the celebrations.
He showed up in the little moments as much as he did in the big ones. Like when Jemima raced to the dressing room and came running back waving a bucket hat in tribute to a small, enthusiastic section of the DY Patil Stadium that had hosted her and the team since day one. Or when the team collectively insisted that former players Anjum Chopra, Mithali Raj and Jehulan Goswami lift the trophy with their own hands. Or when Harmanpreet Kaur, the eldest member of the team, jumped into her father’s arms as if she were 10 again and stayed there, becoming part of the celebration just like her. Or when Smriti Mandhana walked up to the journalists who had been covering their game for a long time and congratulated them. “Everyone is victorious“Victory is for all,” she said.
They didn’t have to do any of that, which is why it was so special. This is why even seasoned journalists shed tears, and why often blunt political writers write social posts from the heart.
Jemima Rodriguez – one of us. That’s a nice gesture to go get your bucket hat and raise the cup in front of the P stand. @buckethatcult #INDvSA pic.twitter.com/a01GRBTsWj
– Reverse Sweep (@trspodcastt) November 3, 2025
Sports victories are rarely so rewarding. Pride pride takes center stage, accompanied by chest-beating, one-upmanship, a mixture of harmless banter and, most likely, vicious trolling of the losing team/fans/club/country. Victories are sometimes celebrated as much with jeers as with cheering, so as to make the whole experience devoid of joy and magic. Scrolling through social media on Monday, it was a joy to see how people of all walks of life, age groups, and other scales are enjoying, innocently and completely, the moment.
The match ended at 12.01am, well after the hours most politicians and community leaders consider “safe” or “appropriate” for women in this nation, but that did not stop the celebrations in Navi Mumbai, or across many other cities as broadcast stations immediately showed. The sight of Indian women celebrating in the streets and public places across India was as significant as the sight of them celebrating on the cricket field. The raw emotions of those expressing their joy on social media weren’t tempered by thoughts of “what if” and “is this true?”…it was pure happiness. Most importantly, there was no mockery of South Africans; It was all about “our girls” and the need to celebrate them.
What elevates it all is the fact that this team has not had an easy ride; The trolling they have endured throughout their careers (in some cases by the same fans who “cheered for them” on Sunday) and even in this tournament could have derailed them at any time. It could have made them angry, bitter or resentful. This is how humans usually react. These players chose to rise above it all, using their moment of glory in a positive way – making sure that the spotlight now on them would reflect back on everyone around them, including those who had just been defeated.
For South Africa, there is pain that India understands, not just the agony of defeat in the biggest tournament, but also the struggle of women in a field completely dominated by men – where men hear the word “Test cricket” and ask women if lunch is ready. This is not an association you can easily understand from the outside, but the fact that players have chosen to rely on it, to emphasize it, speaks volumes.
For the average Indian sports observer, it is a stunning sight. Rarely have those responsible for such a major victory been so eager to share the joy, pride, and credit.
Tomorrow the world will return to its axis, politicians will finish announcing their awards, and even trolls will crawl back from under whatever rock the sunlight has exiled them to. Maybe this will be a 1983 moment for women’s cricket, maybe not. But one thing is clear and cannot be discounted: in that brief, shining moment, India’s women cricketers showed us that top-level sport can be a source of joy, teamwork, and a party to which everyone is invited. This is a win we can all build on.
