Team India Women’s team captain Mithali Raj is of the opinion that reaching the World Cup final is a game changing moment for the women’s cricket and their exceptional showing would translate into the respect which their male counterparts get besides the huge financial gains incurred by the Kohli’s and the Dhoni’s.
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“We have done exceptionally well and I am sure it is a different phase for women s cricket back in India,” Mithali said during the special reception ceremony organised by the Indian High Commissioner YK Sinha on Monday evening.
“Everybody will be looking at women’s cricket from a different perspective and start respecting women cricketers equally as men cricketers and the opportunities and brands that will line up for the girls, it will be a different experience for all of them.
“It will help the future generation of girls to take up the sport. We have used this platform for building a very strong foundation for women cricketers in India so that it is one of the sports they can take this up as a career now,” added Raj.
India was on the verge of creating history in the final against England but it wasn’t to be, as the England team clinched a nail-biting thriller by nine runs top lift their 4th World Cup title.
Raj who was named the captain of the World Cup by ICC conceded that it was a bitter pill to swallow especially because they were in a winning position. She said that it will take time for her and the team to recover from the loss.
“We still need some time to sink in the fact that the match was in our hands but eventually we could not turn it to the result that we wanted. But ultimately it s a sport, one wins and one loses. These girls, I am sure, will learn from the experience. In the coming years, in the T20 World Cup, you never know they might just pull off those victories and get us the cup,” she said.
YK Sinha who was present at Lord’s on Sunday with his wife lauded the whole team for their exceptional performance all through the tournament.
“The way they played throughout the tournament was fantastic. They are excellent ambassadors for not just women s sport but Indian sport,” he told the players at India House in London during their reception before flying back to India.
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