Kranti gauds

ODI World Cup: India batter Pratika Rawal said the historic Women’s ODI World Cup triumph is a reward not just for the hard work done by the current squad, but also for the generations of legendary players who laid the foundation for women's cricket in the country.

During the post-match celebrations in the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, after India clinched the trophy to beat South Africa by 52 runs, emotional scenes unfolded when the Indian team carried the trophy to Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Anjum Chopra and Reema Malhotra - stalwarts who had come agonisingly close to winning the title in previous editions of the ODI World Cup.

“So we were having that round in which we say thank you to all the fans. I saw Jhulan ma'am crying, Mithali ma'am was there and Anjum ma'am was there lifting the trophy. It didn't feel like she hadn’t won the trophy - it felt like she played the match today and won the final. So it felt like an awe moment and just to see how much understanding this team has, generation to generation,” recalled Pratika in an exclusive conversation with IANS on Thursday.