Pratika Rawal revealed during an interaction with PM Modi that the team decided to win the World Cup for her after she got injured during the last league stage clash against Bangladesh. For the unversed, Shafali Varma replaced Pratika in the squad and won player of the match award in final.
The Indian women’s cricket team met PM Modi at his residence at Lok Kalyan Marg in New Delhi on Wednesday. The Prime Minister congratulated the team for the historic triumph, praising their resilience, and also recalled key moments in the World Cup. He also spoke to the opening batter, Pratika Rawal, who sustained an ankle and knee injury while fielding against Bangladesh and eventually got ruled out of the tournament.
During the interaction, Pratika revealed that the team decided to win the World Cup for her after she got ruled out and was also touched by the team’s gesture of taking her to the podium and taking her care while she was in a wheelchair. Notably, she got to know about the same only after the final.
“When I got injured, the entire team decided to win the World Cup for me. None of the players on the team told me, but someone else told it. When I was sitting outside and we won the World Cup, they took me on the stage despite being in a wheelchair and despite technically not being a part of the squad; I was the 16th player. So this team is like a family, when you respect each other, and when a family like this plays with unity, then it becomes close to impossible to beat such a team. So we deserved to play the final and win the final as well,” Rawal said.
After listening to this revelation, even PM Modi agreed with Pratika and said that team spirit is most important in a sport. “Team spirit is the most important in any sport. It doesn’t need to be shown only on the field, but when you stay together for 24 hours, a special bond is created among the team. It helps players cover up the weakness of a teammate and encourage the strength of the other,” Modi said.
Pratika Rawal’s performance in the World Cup 2025
For the unversed, Pratika Rawal played a massive role as an opener throughout the World Cup before getting injured. She scored 308 runs in six innings and finished as the fourth-highest run-scorer in the tournament. She also scored a massive century in the must-win game against New Zealand that helped India reach the semifinal.
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