Destiny’s Turn: Shafali’s Rise from Setback to Stardom in the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup

For some time, the Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 seemed like a movie-inspiring tale. The story of a struggling hero who returns to the basics to address weaknesses, only to suddenly receive the call to represent their nation on the grandest stage, a World Cup.

This scenario mirrors Shafali Verma’s journey. She made history by leading India to its first women’s title when she lifted the U19 T20 World Cup trophy in South Africa a few years earlier. She was pivotal on Sunday, securing a 52-run victory over South Africa in the final with an impressive 87 runs off 78 balls and claiming two critical wickets.

“God has sent me here to do something nice, just happy I could make the team win,” Shafali shared after the triumph.

At just 21 years and 278 days old, Shafali became the youngest player to receive the Player-of-the-Match award in a Women’s World Cup final. Additionally, she and Deepti Sharma joined the exclusive club of players who have both scored over fifty runs and taken two or more wickets in the tournament’s final history.

Just a week ago, she was participating in the Senior Women’s T20 Trophy, having been out of the Indian ODI squad for a year. An unexpected injury to Pratika Rawal created an opportunity for her return.

Beyond her half-century performance, which was her first since 2022, it was her immediate impact with the ball that took the Proteas by surprise — a strategic decision by Harmanpreet Kaur, who decided to trust her instincts.

“When Shafali joined the team, we were missing the overs from Pratika. Shafali has been bowling a lot in domestic cricket. When Amol (Muzumdar) sir spoke to her, she said, ‘I’m ready for 10 overs,’” explained Harmanpreet following the match.

“I didn’t want to go back to the room, thinking why I didn’t try. Those consecutive wickets (of Sune Luus and Marizanne Kapp) were a turning point for us,” she added.

Coach Muzumdar consistently believed Shafali was always part of the ODI plans. “If you look at it positively, a player as good as Shafali not finding a place in the 15 is such a good sign,” he remarked.

“It’s all destiny. When Pratika got injured, we were all gutted. This team prays for each other, stays together through ups and downs. First Yastika Bhatia and then Pratika. When Shafali came, we didn’t want her to feel she joined under an injury cloud.”

“Everyone remained so positive. Our collective focus was this trophy, and we worked tirelessly. This is the result,” concluded Harmanpreet.

Published on Nov 04, 2025.