As India prepares to host the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025, it is also nearing an important milestone. October 31 will mark 50 years since India made its
officially recognised international debut in women’s cricket, playing the West Indies in a Test in Bangalore.
In a moment of symmetry, the World Cup final will take place 49 years on from the day that Test match ended.
For a time, it stood alone, before the enterprising Mahendra Kumar Sharma took to his autorickshaw to announce to Lucknow that ‘there will be a cricket match by girls, do come’.
In April 1973, the first national level competition was held, but the WCAI’s establishment came without enough time for India to take part in the inaugural Women’s Cricket World Cup, which was held in England across June and July of that year.
Instead, India’s international debut came at home in 1976 as Shubhangi Kulkarni took the first five-wicket haul for her country, while captain Shantha Rangaswamy top-scored with 74 in the first innings of a drawn Test with the Windies.
The year 1978 was a seminal one for India, with the very first day of January marking their ODI bow and their hosting debut of the Women’s Cricket World Cup.
Their first ODI victory came in the next World Cup in New Zealand in 1982, beating an International XI, before Fowzieh Khalili made 88 as India defeated England by 47 runs. India then missed the 1988 World Cup and took time to build up to be the perennial challengers they are today.
A maiden semi-final appearance came in 1997 before the ceiling was broken in 2005 as India played in a final for the very first time, losing to a dominant Australia.
India have recently returned from a summer in England with wins in both the ODI and T20 series, the latter a first of its kind in England.
“I’m excited because World Cups always get those old memories back,” she said at a 50 Days to Go event held in Mumbai. “And in the last year, the team has been doing really well in this format.
“But not just ODIs, in even the T20s, coming off a wonderful series in England, beating England in England is a huge ask, but they have done it. I can see when they were talking about the confidence and having a home World Cup, there is nothing better when the team is doing well.”
Harmanpreet Kaur has taken over the mantle from Raj as leader and sits third behind her predecessor and Smriti Mandhana in the list of ODI run-makers for her country.
Kaur said at the Mumbai event:
“It will be the same as how I played my first ODI World Cup. I just want to go there and enjoy my cricket, which is more important for me because that is the way I started playing cricket because I enjoyed the sport a lot. But playing in front of home crowds is always special and hopefully this time we will give 100 per cent and try and break that barrier which all Indian fans and all of us as players are waiting for."
