Keep giving us love - Harmanpreet Kaur's heartwarming message for India
Kaur hopes that India's run at the 2017 World Cup will help more women to take up the sport
What's the story?
Indian Women's cricket team vice captain Harmanpreet Kaur delivered a heartwarming message to the nation asking the fans to keep supporting the team the way they have done en route their march to the final of the 2017 World Cup.
Despite losing out to hosts England in the crunch match on Sunday, Kaur was proud of the way the Women in Blue performed throughout the campaign and thanked the nation for supporting the team even after they fell agonisingly close to the finishing line.
"Which city you are from doesn't matter, what matters is what your thinking is. A dream has come true, a dream to play good cricket. Proud that we have made our country's flag fly high," she said.
"The message to India is that keep giving us love like you've given right now. Motivate the girls of India to play cricket because currently, we are not seeing enough young girls playing cricket.
"Bring as many girls into sports because being represented is very important," she further added.
The background
Chasing the target of 229 set by England, India suffered a big blow early on losing Smriti Mandhana in the opening over itself. Despite losing skipper Mithali Raj soon after, India still looked well on their way to a famous victory thanks to a brilliant partnership between Kaur and opener Punam Raut.
However, Raut's dismissal with India 38 runs away from victory led to a batting collapse which saw India fall painfully short by 9 runs.
Extra Cover: ICC Women's World Cup 2017 in numbers
The heart of the matter
Despite the heartbreaking loss, Kaur wants to focus on the positives and believes that the tournament has helped Women's Cricket make its presence felt in a big way and wants the nation to help in sustaining the impact.
Kaur was one of the best players for India in the tournament, with the swashbuckling knock of 171 from just 115 balls against defending champions Australia in the semi-final being the obvious highlight.
She deservedly found a place in the ICC Team of the Tournament alongside skipper Mithali Raj but it's the impact that the whole team has created with their performances throughout the tournament that has everyone including Kaur hoping for a big transition in the approach to Women's cricket.
While the enthralling finale had everyone in India glued to their TV sets on Sunday, Kaur wants the fans to continue supporting the team with the same tenacity in the future as well.
She is also hopeful that the team's run to the final inspires many young girls to take up the sport and wants the parents to be supportive as well.
What's next?
The run to the final has helped the players benefit monetarily with Kaur even offered a job in Punjab police. The BCCI is also planning a grand felicitation ceremony for the side once they land back in India.
Extra Cover: A fan's perspective on what's next for the Indian women's cricket team
Author's take
The Indian Women's Cricket team has made the nation proud with their performances at the 2017 World Cup and it is indeed time for the fans to repay them with their faith to the cause of Women's cricket.
The male counterparts have enjoyed a great fan following in a country which follows cricket as a religion and though it was overwhelming to see the response that the women's cricket team received when they made it to the final, it is important that the euphoria is sustained to help women's cricket grow bigger and better.