'Jemimah Rodrigues' century was better than my 1983 World Cup semi-final fifty': Sandeep Patil

India's women's cricket team secured a historic five-wicket win against Australia in the 2025 World Cup semi-final. This monumental victory has drawn parallels to the 1983 men's World Cup triumph, with legends like Sunil Gavaskar and Sandeep Patil lauding the performance.

Sandeep Patil. (Pic Credit - X)

Navi Mumbai: The Indian women's team's incredible five-wicket victory over seven-time champions Australia in the semi-final of the 2025 Women's ODI World Cup at the DY Patil Stadium on Thursday night has warmed the hearts of 'Kapil's Devils' - as the members of India's 1983 Men's World Cup team are known. Talking to TOI, cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar hailed India's triumph over the formidable Aussies as "one of the greatest wins in Indian cricket - both men’s and women’s game."

Jemimah Rodrigues after India reach Women's World Cup final: 'Was going through a lot of anxiety'

Another of India's '83 World Cup heroes, Sandeep Patil said that the Indian women's team's stunning win over Australia reminded him of India's upset over England at Old Trafford in that World Cup. "The Indian women's team's World Cup semi-final win over Australia reminded me of our semis victory against England in the 1983 World Cup. Beating Australia is always special. To beat the West Indies in the 1980s (India humbled the mighty West Indies by 43 runs in the final at Lord's) was something similar. This Australian women’s team is just as dominant,” Patil said. “I've sent a congratulatory note to Amol (Muzumdar, Indian women's team head coach),” he added. What further stoked Patil's unforgettable memories further was that he had smashed a 32-ball 51 not out, laced with eight fours, to help India get to 214 in the semifinals of the 1983 World Cup. Similarly, on Thursday night, Jemimah Rodrigues slammed a match-winning century - a magnificent 127 not out off 134 balls - that helped India hunt down a world record chase of 339 in the penultimate over.

Jemimah Rodrigues scored an unbeaten century for India against Australia in the Women's World Cup.

Patil rates Jemimah’s century far higher than his quickfire fifty, which helped India gallop to the finish line. "Of course, Jemimah's knock was better than mine. Her shot selection, calmness under pressure and that typical old Bombay 'khaodoos' (gritty) attitude were the standout features of her innings. It was a big target, but she remained till the end at the crease. It was a brilliant century. My half-century was literally 'half' of it - I mean I was 51 not out, and Jemimah was 127 not out! When an Indian women's team batter scores a century, it feels fantastic," he said. "Before the semi-final, (former West Indies pacer) Ian Bishop had said on TV commentary that he wanted the Indian women's team to remember our '83 win the semifinals. And, history was indeed repeated!," Patil said. Patil felt that the transition of Indian women's cricket began from 2008-12 during his stint as the director of the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, when the likes of Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami trained at the BCCI's facility for the first time. "Our women's team has played some fantastic cricket. They've been consistent in the last few years. I remember that the transition of Indian women's cricket started in 2009, when I was at the NCA, and the likes of Mithali and Jhulan trained there. It was the first time that India's women cricketers had come to the NCA, where top coaches like Bharat Arun and Dinesh Nanavati started working with them in special camps for them. "I've seen their progress very closely. I feel very happy with the growth of women's cricket in India. While Diana (Edulji) and Shantha (Rangaswamy), both former India captains, were the pioneers of women's cricket in India, Indian women's cricket has progressed so well," said the former batter.

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