When Amol Muzumdar took charge of the Indian women’s cricket team in 2023, his focus on fitness and fielding became a mantra played on loop.
His tenure followed a phase of the women’s team journey marred by frequent coaching changes, player displeasure, and questionable selection calls that were often unanswered.
After multiple coaching stints in domestic and franchise setups, and consulting gigs with a few international teams, Muzumdar took on the responsibility of making a promising bunch of women world champions.
Two years later, that dream stands realised. As the Women in Blue ran across the width of the turf in raucous celebration, Muzumdar was engulfed in a tight embrace among the support staff in the dugout. Tears were inevitable.
“It’s an unbelievable feeling. It has not sunk in as of now. It’s a surreal feeling,” he said after India beat South Africa by 52 runs in a tense final at the D.Y. Patil Stadium here.
The task of keeping morale high, particularly through India’s pitstops in Visakhapatnam and Indore, where it endured three testing losses to South Africa, Australia, and England, was anything but easy. He hailed the side’s resilience to follow that low with the highs of performance in the three knock-out games: the virtual quarterfinal against New Zealand, the semifinal against the Aussies, and the summit clash against the Proteas.
“We had a series of camps before we set off for the World Cup. The mood was set there and then in Guwahati, when we beat Sri Lanka. There was no looking back from there.”
A domestic veteran with over 11,000 runs to his name, Muzumdar missed out on the opportunity to don the India blues as a cricketer. He has now valiantly helped India Women to their first senior ICC title and puts that down to the cohesion in the team.
“The last two years have been incredible with this team. They are together all the time. We back each other. It’s been fantastic to work with such a talented and committed group of players. My playing days are gone. There’s no imprint in my mind. But, you know, at the same time, whatever inputs I can give, whatever experience I do have, I love to share it always.”
The comparisons to the 1983 World Cup win are inevitable, and Muzumdar believes this triumph for the women will have a ripple effect on the sport’s national ecosystem.
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“It’s a watershed moment in Indian cricket. Not just women’s cricket, in Indian cricket. The stadium was packed today, but beyond that, I don’t know how many crores of people must have watched on TV and gotten inspired in some way. I just met a little girl, a 3-4-year-old girl, whose inspiration is Harman [Harmanpreet Kaur]. She follows Harman wherever she goes. So, there you go. The more you have these kinds of days, the more inspired people get.”
After the semifinal triumph against Australia, Muzumdar told his side, “We have worked so hard for November 2, not October 30. If we stay on 30 October, we won’t be able to play for November 2.”
With blinkers on, India galloped its way into the history books.
Published on Nov 03, 2025
