Shafali Verma was called into the India Women’s team after Pratika Rawal sustained an injury just before the Women’s World Cup 2025 semi-finals. Shafali has recently said that she felt as if God had noticed her hard work when she was given the opportunity to return to the side. She also admitted that being out of international cricket for so long was difficult, but she was delighted she could make it worthwhile.
Pratika, the tournament’s fourth-highest run-getter, had to give way to Shafali owing to an ankle fracture. Shafali admitted that receiving an opportunity to replace an injured comrade was not a good feeling. She put her emotions aside and contributed to the Women in Blue’s historic victory.
“Getting selected for the semi-final was the happiest moment for me after being out of the team for a year. That time was very tough, but I kept working. When Pratika Rawal got injured, and I got called in, I felt like God noticed my hard work. No one wants to replace a teammate due to injury, but I was grateful to get the chance to contribute,” Shafali told via JioStar’s Celebrating Champions.
We are living the golden era the seniors helped create: Shafali Verma
Shafali, who made a vital all-round contribution in India’s win in the finals, said that she felt extremely elated as the entire’s team hard work over the years had finally come to fruition. The Haryana-born made a crucial half-century while batting first, as the Indians posted a 299-run target for the South African side. Later in the match, she delivered seven overs while also picking two important wickets, which played a huge part in the victory.
“When we lifted the trophy at DY Patil Stadium, it felt like all our hard work paid off. The stadium atmosphere gave us extra energy. I want to thank Anjum [Chopra] Didi and all our seniors who kept women’s cricket alive with their passion. We are living the golden era they helped create, and this trophy is as much theirs as it is ours,” Shafali said further.
Recently, Shafali was retained by the Delhi Capitals Women ahead of the WPL 2026 auctions. She was retained for INR 2.2 crore, alongside Jemimah Rodrigues, Marizanne Kapp, Annabel Sutherland, and Niki Prasad. With a lot of attention shifting to women’s cricket now, Shafali will be confident of putting up a show in the WPL as well.
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