India, Nov. 6 -- When the boys in her village cricket team fell short of a player, they turned to her but only as a fielder. Slowly, she earned their trust, becoming a regular member who was allowed to bat and ball. That day, without realising it, Kranti Goud bowled the first delivery of a journey that would end with her lifting the Women's World Cup trophy for India.

The 22-year-old pacer from Ghuwara village in Madhya Pradesh, who played a key role in India's historic maiden Women's World Cup triumph, says she didn't even know that an Indian women's cricket team existed when she first picked up the ball.

"There was a ground in front of my house, so boys used to play there. When the ball came near my house, I would throw it back. One d...