Navi Mumbai, Nov. 3 -- There are moments in time when a sport elevates itself from the boundaries of skills and tactics. When it receives such widespread support that it takes the form of a revolution. The 1983 ODI World Cup win when the men beat the mighty West Indies was one such moment. The 2025 World Cup win by Harmanpreet Kaur and her team in front of a 45,000-strong capacity crowd in Navi Mumbai on Sunday could well prove to be another such moment. It was perhaps only apt that captain Harmanpreet Kaur took the final catch as India beat South Africa by 52 runs after posting 298 in the final. As she ran off into the outfield, the rest of the stadium rose in unison. The trophy had indeed come home. Before the twin knockout matches in Navi Mumbai, the women's team had received massive support in Guwahati, Visakhapatnam and Indore. Smriti No.18 made it to the unorganized stadium sales counters the same way as Virat No.18. As the marketing campaign went, "Jeetega to India hi na". After years of trying, they now finally have earned the right to be called world champions. India wouldn't have won it without Sangli girl Smriti Mandhana, their leading run scorer. They couldn't have travelled further without Deepti Sharma's 19 wickets, the most in the tournament. Or young Shree Charni from Kadappa, who in her first world event bowled with the acumen of a veteran. Richa Ghosh hit the ball a long way every time the scoring rate needed a push. Jemimah Rodrigues, without whom India couldn't have pulled off the record chase in the semi-final to send mighty Australia packing. Pratika Rawal, whose composed century helped push New Zealand aside in the must-win league game. Pratika was ill-fated to be robbed of a chance to play a part in the final, but Shafali Verma was there to step into her shoes and deliver the final salvo against South Africa. Above all, India couldn't have done it without their captain, the courageous Harmanpreet Kaur, who eight years ago played one of the greatest World Cup innings to first show the world Australia could be overpowered. In the twilight of her career, the captain earned her just reward. India's women's team, ever since they came under the aegis of the BCCI have been threatening to become world beaters. The loss in the 2017 ODI World Cup final, where they fell short of by 9 runs at Lord's, was agonising. Had they managed to give a better account of themselves in the 2020 T20 World Cup final at Melbourne, that would have been a seismic event too. But even making the final was progress. Back in 2005, Mithali Raj's India had made an ODI World Cup final too. And that was most creditable, but that was a time when women's world events were but a side show that faded from our memories quickly. After defeating South Africa, Harmanpreet and her team gets to take home Rs 40 crore in prize money, the men's equivalent of becoming ODI world beaters. The BCCI is likely to announce a handsome bonus too Rohit Sharma, himself, was in attendance watching Verma wield her willow with force and equanimity. Rohit would have fully understood watching Mandhana coach Verma mid-pitch into a long innings. He would do just the same to the mercurial Rishabh Pant. Such care and counsel are now common in women's cricket. Also watching from the stands was VVS Laxman, the head of BCCI's Centre of Excellence; its vast expanse of advanced sport science is available to India's women cricketers in the same measure as men. ICC chairman Jay Shah was watching too, who during his reign in the BCCI, oversaw a series of reforms including pay parity in match fees for women cricketers. Witness to India's historic win was Diana Edulji, the legendary former captain, sitting in the stands and Mithali Raj was calling the action on broadcast. Raj was the Indian captain on both the previous occasions when they finished runners up. Head coach Amol Mazumdar, who didn't get to wear the India jersey, found a way back for his team from three successive defeats and a title run to remember. Perhaps that is why Harman and Co won the Cup but the win belongs to us all....