On January 29th, a special tribute was given to India’s Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 triumph at the Beating Retreat Ceremony at Vijay Chowk in New Delhi. The Beating Retreat ceremony marked the conclusion of the 77th Republic Day celebrations, and the event was graced by the presence of President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President CP Radhakrishnan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The bands of the Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force and the Central Armed Police Forces played energetic tunes with their foot as the crowd watched in wonder and applauded the perfectly synchronised marches, with the soldiers forming the shape of the World Cup trophy to pay tribute to the Indian Women’s team’s historic maiden World Cup victory.
India, led by skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, won the first game against Sri Lanka, in the tournament opener, by 59 runs at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati, on 30th September 2025. They won their 2nd game against Pakistan by 88 runs in the R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.
The home side suffered the first defeat of their campaign, against South Africa, by 3 wickets in a tense finish, on 9th October at Visakhapatnam. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led India suffered their 2nd successive defeat in their campaign, against Australia by 3 wickets and suffered their 3rd successive defeat of their campaign, against England, by four runs on 19th October 2025, at the Holkar Stadium, Indore.
India returned to winning ways with a comprehensive 53-run win against New Zealand at the DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai. India’s final league game against Bangladesh was washed out. India had featured in the finals of the ODI World Cup in 2005 and 2017 but failed to cross the line at the end. India had the most dramatic of entries into the final, where Navi Mumbai witnessed the highest ever chase in a World Cup knockout game across both Men’s and Women’s cricket.
The Australian side were absolutely dominant with the bat as Phoebe Litchfield and Ellyse Perry stitched together a formidable 155-run partnership. Even after dismissing the duo, Ashleigh Gardner had no plans on stopping the flow as she scored a quickfire 63 off just 45 balls. The target seemed to be a bit too high for the Indian side, considering their record in chasing, especially against Australia. Shafali and Smriti didn’t last long enough, and India seemed to be in huge trouble with their openers being dismissed.
Then out came the skipper, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Jemimah Rodrigues to build a match-winning partnership of 167 runs. After the dismissal of Kaur, things seemed to go wayward once again, especially with the soft dismissal of Deepti Sharma. But then Jemimah shifted gears quickly to accelerate the chase, and a strong cameo from Richa Ghosh, where she scored 26 off 16 balls, strengthened India’s chances for a win. At the end, India won by 5 wickets with 9 balls to spare.
After the theatrics in the semi-final, India simply just had to lay their hands for the very first time on the World Cup. Deepti Sharma earned the Player of the Tournament award with outstanding numbers of 215 runs and 22 wickets, including a sensational 5-wicket haul and a solid half-century. Shafali Varma took matters into her own hands with a brilliant all-round display in the final, scoring 87 runs and picking up 2 wickets, securing India’s World Cup triumph. This victory was a statement to many who doubted Women’s cricket and a ray of hope for all aspiring Women cricketers in India.
The World Cup triumph was a significant milestone in the country’s cricketing history, and for head coach Amol Muzumdar and captain Harmanpreet Kaur, crowning their efforts for the historical landmark. The ‘Beating Retreat’ ceremony is rooted in a long-standing military tradition that features bands from the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force performing a beautiful composition of patriotic and classical performances, creating an atmosphere that fills us with honour and pride.
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