Harmanpreet Kaur’s journey over the past year has felt nothing short of cinematic. Fresh off leading India to their maiden ICC World Cup title in women’s cricket, she now stands at the centre of yet another moment of honour. The Punjab Cricket Association has informed her that a stand at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium in Mullanpur will soon be named after her, a gesture that left the skipper smiling as she shared the news.
The announcement came on a celebratory evening at the CNN-News18 Indian of the Year Awards, where Harmanpreet received the Champion of the World award. Seated alongside trailblazers Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami, she reflected on what the past months have meant. The recognition also resonated more deeply because the ACA-VDCA Stadium in Vizag recently named a stand after Mithali. When asked if she hoped for similar honour, Harmanpreet revealed that the confirmation had already arrived from PCA.
This World Cup win has placed her in a rare league. She is now only the fourth Indian captain, after Kapil Dev, MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma to lift a senior cricket World Cup trophy. For Harmanpreet, it wasn’t just a victory but the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. She expressed gratitude towards the BCCI and Jay Shah for the support the women’s team has received in recent years, acknowledging the impact of initiatives such as pay parity and the Women’s Premier League in shaping a stronger, more confident squad.
India’s path to the title was anything but easy. They entered the World Cup on the back of promising form, with three ODI series wins and a historic first bilateral T20I series win in England. Yet the tournament tested them from the start. After opening with commanding victories against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, the team hit a rough phase with narrow defeats to South Africa, Australia and England.
But when the pressure peaked, India’s resilience rose to match it. They stormed into the semi-final to face the defending champions Australia and stunned them with one of the most spirited performances in the tournament.
In the final, they faced an in-form South African side and delivered another remarkable show to break a long-standing jinx, ending the heartbreaks of 2005 and 2017 and finally lifting the World Cup trophy.
Now, as Harmanpreet prepares to see her name woven into the fabric of her home ground, the honour feels like an extension of a dream fulfilled.
It marks not just a tribute to her achievements but a symbol of how far women’s cricket in India has come and how much further it can go with leaders like her at the helm.
