India, Nov. 4 -- Former India captain Mithali Raj, one of the most influential figures in women's cricket, has opened up about the early struggles of Indian women cricketers - a time when passion, not pay, kept the sport alive. Recalling the 2005 Women's World Cup, where India reached the final for the first time, Mithali revealed that the players received a match fee of just Rs.1,000 per game.

Speaking on The Lallantop's show 'Guest in the Newsroom' in July this year, Mithali shared how women's cricket operated on limited resources long before the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) took over in 2006.

"We didn't have annual contracts back then," Mithali said in the interview, which has gone viral after India won their maiden W...