Smriti Mandhana capped off a stellar season by being named Best International Cricketer (Women) at the BCCI Naman Awards, reflecting on a year marked by both personal milestones and India’s triumph on the global stage.
The India vice-captain looked back on a campaign highlighted by the team’s ICC Women’s ODI World Cup victory, choosing to emphasise collective success over individual accolades.
“It’s been a great year. Again, I can’t really mention a lot about my own performance because of the way we played the World Cup and winning the World Cup, that was pretty special. But for me individually as well, it was a great year in terms of doing what I could for the team and I’m happy that I could contribute to that,” Mandhana said in a BCCI video.
She also underlined India’s broader resurgence across formats, pointing to a remarkable phase for both the men’s and women’s teams. “As I mentioned in the speech, four World Cups and one Champions Trophy, that’s pretty amazing. And for Indian cricket, we had a few years where there was no World Cup, and a lot of people had a lot of things to say. But to come back in the last two years and doing what the Indian cricket has done, it’s just amazing. And just to be part of the evening and celebrating all the teams, it’s just amazing.”
Mandhana credited the groundwork laid behind the scenes for the team’s success, highlighting the importance of preparation and administrative support. She specifically acknowledged the role played by Jay Shah in elevating the women’s game, particularly through initiatives like the Women’s Premier League. “If you want to do something special, you want to go on to win the World Cup. It doesn’t just happen in that World Cup. The preparation has to start. And for us, to be fair, Jay (Shah) sir has been just amazing in the last three years, four years from the time he’s come and he’s got WPL. WPL has really changed the way women’s cricket has been played. And again, an equal pick in terms of the match fees. And, smaller things, more than all those things.”
She further stressed the role of improved infrastructure and support systems in building a championship-winning side. “Just the kind of support staff was provided, the kind of facilities which were provided, whatever was asked was given. So when you do those sort of things, those things right, the result comes. And the 19 women’s winning the World Cup and as well as WPL creating stars and then us going on to win the World Cup. That’s just the start of something really great,” Mandhana said.