Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur Flexing World Cup Tattoo After Historic Win Goes Viral 

Despite scoring just 20 runs in the final, Harmanpreet Kaur secured the win through excellent leadership and taking the match-winning catch.

Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur Flexing World Cup Tattoo After Historic Win Goes Viral 

Harmanpreet Kaur and Smiriti Mandhana inked similar tattoos on their hands, following World Cup triumph. (via X)

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Days after winning their first ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup title, Indian women’s cricketing stars Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur became tattoo twins. The two players showed off their identical World Cup trophy tattoos on social media, leaving fans and admirers in awe.

The 2025 World Cup victory meant everything for captain Harmanpreet Kaur, given she had featured in a total of five different tournaments since the 2009 edition. She also became the third Indian captain, after Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni, to lift the ICC ODI World Cup. The 36-year-old contributed with two crucial knocks throughout the tournament, including a much-needed 89 runs off 88 balls in the semi-final against Australia.

Smriti Mandhana on the other hand, endured a stunning WC campaign with the bat, finishing as the tournament’s second highest run-getter. She also broke a number of records, becoming the first female cricketer to score over 1,000 runs in a year in ODIs. Mandhana scored 434 runs in nine matches at a remarkable average of 54.25, also scoring 45 runs off 58 balls in the final, to forge a 104-run partnership with Shafali Verma. 

Both Kaur and Mandhana overcame the heartbreak of India’s narrow 2017 Women’s Cricket World Cup final defeat to England, to win the 2025 edition. The two players found a special way to remember India’s triumph with identical tattoos. Kaur was the first one to share an image of her tattoo on social media, having inked an image of the trophy on her bicep as a reminder of a long-standing dream fulfilled. Her caption read:

Forever etched in my skin and my heart. Waited for you since Day1 and now I will see you every morning and be grateful.

The Indian captain could not contain her emotions after the win on Sunday night, embracing her father like a child. Similar to Kaur’s gesture, a video shared by the BCCI also showed Mandhana having inked a ‘World Cup trophy’ tattoo on her forearm, with an Indian flag wrapped around it. The ace Indian opener celebrated her World Cup victory with her soon-to-be husband, Palash Muchhal.

Beyond that, India also took home a whopping prize money of $4.18 millions, alongside an INR 51 crores cash prize announced by the BCCI. Earlier today, the members of the victorious Indian Women’s cricket team traveled to New Delhi, sharing moments with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 

Time for change: Former India captain urges Harmanpreet Kaur to hand captaincy to Smriti Mandhana

Immediately after leading India to its maiden Women’s World Cup title, captain Harmanpreet Kaur now faces calls to step down. The 36-year-old, possibly having featured in her last World Cup and nearing the dawn of her career, was urged to hand over the captaincy to vice-captain Smriti Mandhana. 

Harmanpreet Kaur captaincy
Harmanpreet Kaur has been urged to hand over captaincy baton to Smriti Mandhana by former India captain Shantha Ramaswamy. (via Mint)

The idea of captaincy change was put forward by former India Women’s captain Shantha Rangaswamy, who played as an all-rounder from 1976 to 1991. Rangaswamy was in fact the captain in 1976, when India Women won its first-ever Test match against the West Indies. Having most recently been appointed the chief of the Indian Cricketers’ Association (ICA), Rangaswamy is a legend of the game.

The 71-year-old pressed for a captaincy change, given the Indian Women’s team is getting prepared for its long-term future. She suggested that Kaur can contribute better if she is relieved from her captaincy duties. While noting that all-rounder still has a few years of cricket left in her, Rangaswamy noted that Kaur can do well, especially as a batter and a fielder, after having fumbled as skipper at times. She told PTI: 

It’s overdue. Because Harman [Harmanpreet Kaur], as a batter and a fielder, is brilliant. Yes. But tactically, she can fumble at times. I feel she can contribute more if she’s without the burden of captaincy.

It remains to be seen what lies ahead for the Indian Women’s team, with Kaur having stated that the team’s intent is on winning more trophies from here. India next takes on Australia in an all-format tour, with the matches scheduled to start in February 2026. 

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