Former India captain Mithali Raj believes her long-held aspiration of seeing Indian cricket dominate on the world stage is now materialising, following a series of major international successes achieved by the men’s, women’s and junior teams in recent years.
India’s men’s side ended a prolonged title drought by winning the 2024 T20 World Cup, while the women’s team secured their maiden ICC trophy by clinching the ODI World Cup last year. The country’s influence has also extended to the junior level, with India’s under-19 teams lifting global titles in recent seasons, strengthening their reputation as a leading force in international cricket.
“For the longest time, I wanted Indian cricket to dominate and the time has come,” Mithali said at the BCCI Naman Awards.
“The last two-three years, Indian cricket — men, women and the under-19 girls or boys, they’ve been doing immensely well. It’s a proud moment as a former cricketer to see the growth of Indian cricket.” Mithali, along with former players Rahul Dravid and Roger Binny, was honoured with the Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award during the BCCI’s annual ceremony on Sunday.
She also acknowledged the role played by former BCCI secretary and current ICC chief Jay Shah in the development of Indian cricket, particularly in the progress of the women’s game.
“I have seen the evolution of women’s cricket and I need to acknowledge the support of BCCI and Jay sir. In the last four-five years, there has been a huge transformation of the Indian women’s cricket team and that is because of that one person.
“His vision and commitment towards it…globally also he has put in so much effort to enhance and promote women’s cricket’s profile. It shows that he is a visionary and committed to the cause,” she said.
During Shah’s tenure, initiatives such as equal match fees for men and women and the launch of the Women’s Premier League were introduced, contributing to structural changes in the sport.
A pioneer of the women’s game in India, Mithali also spoke about the influence of senior male cricketers on her own career, highlighting the inspiration she drew from figures such as Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid.
“Women’s cricket had its own journey, so did men’s cricket. But we’ve taken a lot of inspiration from the men cricketers.
“I’ve taken inspiration from Rahul and Sachin because whenever I’ve bumped into them, they’ve always had a lot to chat about, about batting and the advice and suggestions really worked for me when I was playing.”
She emphasised that interaction between male and female players has played a significant role in raising standards within the women’s game.
“This interaction between the men and women, I think, helps the women cricketers greatly because we’re always trying to catch up with the standards of men’s cricket. In that context, both of them have been doing well.”
Former BCCI president Roger Binny, a member of India’s 1983 World Cup-winning squad, also reflected on his journey in the sport as a player, coach and administrator.
“I was fortunate to be one of the players to play for India. Coming from a country whose population is so big, not many of us get a chance to represent the country. So, for me, representing the country was the biggest goal I achieved in cricket.”
