Women's World Cup: Amol Muzumdar on his champion Indian side - 'They have done every Indian proud'
47 years after playing in their first-ever World Cup, India's women have tasted World Cup glory. Clearly, a defining moment in the history of women's cricket, not only in India but also globally. Every person in the country is undoubtedly proud of the squad but head coach Amol Muzumdar might claim to be a bit prouder than the rest, and why not!
It wasn't the most ideal league stage for the tournament co-hosts as they lost three in a row after having won the first two games. However, they held their nerve to stay alive, qualified for the semis and the rest, as they say, is history!
"Absolutely proud. I don't know, it has not yet sunk in. Unbelievable achievement and they deserve every credit and everything that will follow from here. They have worked terribly hard," said Muzumdar in a chat with the host broadcaster after the final."
"They have done every Indian proud. We did not look at those losses as losses, we looked them as we could not get over the line. We dominated majority of those matches, and we just thought there are some hiccups. We were still alive in the tournament and here we are, as world champions. I know for a fact that they have worked extremely hard for this, and it is a watershed moment for Indian cricket."
Meanwhile, Pratika Rawal doesn't know how to react and she wasn't even playing in the final. An unfortunate injury in the final league game against Bangladesh meant that Rawal was ruled out of the remainder of the tournament. Shafali Verma, who replaced Rawal, did fail in the semifinal but roared today in the final with a massive all-round show.
She was obviously disappointed at missing out but Rawal was supporting her team like every other fan in the stadium.
"I cannot express enough. There are no words (to express it). This flag on my shoulder, means a lot and being here with the team is just surreal. Injuries are part and parcel of the game," said Rawal
"Very happy I was part of this team, this winning team. I just love this team. I am very happy that we actually made it. and we are the first team to have won a World Cup in so long, and the crowd really deserves it. It was very difficult to sit out and watch the play. Very easy to play the match. Seeing this energy, environment, it gave me goosebumps, whenever there was a wicket or a six. It is amazing."
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