Sipu Jha
NEW DELHI: Indian cricketer Smriti Mandhana made history as India clinched their first-ever ICC Women’s World Cup title in 2025, with her boyfriend, musician Palash Muchhal, celebrating alongside her while sporting a special tattoo — “SM18”, representing her initials and jersey number.Muchhal shared a celebratory photo after India’s 52-run victory over South Africa, showing Mandhana beaming with joy as he held the World Cup trophy. He captioned the image, “Sabse aage hai hum Hindustani” (Ahead of everyone, us Indians).The revelation of Muchhal’s tattoo featuring Mandhana’s initials and jersey number quickly drew attention online, with fans praising his public show of support for her.The couple is reportedly planning to tie the knot in November in Mandhana’s hometown of Sangli.
Mandhana’s performance throughout the tournament was instrumental in India’s triumph. After a slow start, she produced a series of match-defining innings — scoring 80, 88, and 109 against Australia, England, and New Zealand respectively during the league stage.
In the final, her vital 45 off 58 balls and a 104-run opening stand with Shafali Verma helped India post a commanding 298/7, setting the stage for their historic win. Mandhana finished the tournament as the second-highest run-scorer, amassing 434 runs in nine innings.
“I don’t know how do I react to that. It is still sinking in. As you said, I haven’t been emotional on a cricket field. But yeah, I mean, this is a very unreal moment. Home World Cup and yeah, I mean, to be the champion in India, I mean, I just can’t. I’m still not able to process it,” Mandhana said after the match.She continued: “I mean, every World Cup we go in and there have been so many heartbreaks for all of us. But yeah, I mean, we always believe that we have a bigger responsibility with women’s cricket. And genuinely, just to see the support we’ve got over the last one and a half month and to see people come and support us. I mean, I don’t know how do I explain the last 40 days.”
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