The Indian women’s cricket team may have lost the T20 World Cup in Melbourne, but they have certainly won millions of hearts back home. Here was a young squad — with four teenagers — who were determined to take on the best in the world. And it almost made it to the top. Indeed, in the run up to the final, the women in blue were impressive and won all their league matches and even trounced Australia — the team to which it finally lost in the final. Unfortunately, on the big day many star performers failed to come good. If they had, then it would have been a historic moment for women’s cricket in the country.

However, despite being trounced in the final there are many positives to take home from the tournament for the team as well as its coach WV Raman. The superlative performances in the league stage against Australia and New Zealand proved that our women cricketers have the mettle to take on the best in the world in the short format of the game. And though we finished second to the Aussies, it must not be forgotten that we lost to a team which came into this tournament having won four T20 World Cups since its inception in 2009. This time around Australia were the favourites tipped to win a fifth time. Not many were betting on India qualifying for the final.

But moving away from the game, there is something endearing about our women cricketers. Perhaps this is because they come minus the hype, attention and star trappings that their male counterparts bask in. Neither are they signed on to endorse a wide spectrum of lifestyle products. As a result, not many of them are omnipresent on our TV screens and prefer to keep a low profile and concentrate on their game. In fact, several members of the women’s squad hail from small towns and have withstood patriarchal pressures to pursue their interest in a male dominated sport.

Now that the 2020 World Cup is done and dusted it is time to look ahead. The next tournament, to be played in South Africa, is just two years away. Till then its two cheers, if not three, for women’s cricket.

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