It has become a dear custom for the world cricket champions to wake up with the World Cup trophy and share a photo with it. On Monday, November 3, Harmanpreet Kaur, India captain, went along with the craze, uploading a funny picture of her "waking up" with the trophy."
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Harmanpreet Kaur’s photoshoot with a deeper meaning
But Harmanpreet’s photoshoot carried a meaningful twist. In the image, she wore a T-shirt that read: “Cricket is everyone’s game.” Taken a day after India’s historic Women’s World Cup triumph, the photo quickly went viral, striking an emotional chord with fans across the country.
The image was a symbol to many people not only of the celebration but also the tough journey of Indian women cricketers, who have fought against stereotypes, lack of opportunities, and societal bias to make a place for themselves in the sport. Harmanpreet, in fact, came from Moga, Punjab, where playing cricket was a thing that was only for boys, and once it was seen that way. Her journey from those cramped alleys to raising the World Cup as a captain is the most illustrative example of the spirit that her shirt message represented.
The post reached out to the masses, it was not just the joy of victory that it reflected but also the core of the concept of equal rights, perseverance, and pride which are the defining characteristics of the new era of Indian women's cricket.
India ended their long wait for an ICC title as a result of Harmanpreet Kaur’s side success in the 2025 Women’s World Cup, defeating South Africa by 52 runs at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. The night, which was full of a crowd, belonged to Harmanpreet, not just for her leadership, but also for a defining moment that sealed India’s victory.
It was Harmanpreet who caught the ball that ended the game, with cover getting a sharp return from her dismissing Nadine de Klerk. De Klerk’s uppish drive looked like it was going to go over the fielder, but Harmanpreet’s perfectly timed jump caught the ball from nowhere, shearing the crowd into a celebration and ending the long wait for Indian women's cricket.
