The team, led by Harmanpreet Kaur, lifted the first ICC trophy by Indian women on Sunday, beating formidable South Africa by 52 runs in the final at Navi Mumbai, sparking celebrations across the country. The squad is expected to call on Modi on Wednesday.

The ODI World Cup winners landed in a chartered flight at the General Aviation Terminal (GAT), a specialised facility dedicated to private jets and chartered flights, at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport, and were escorted to Taj Palace hotel by Delhi Police where they’ll stay overnight.

Jemimah Rodrigues, who hit a majestic match-winning century in the semi-final against Australia, along with left-arm spinner Radha Yadav and off-spinner Sneh Rana were seen dancing to dhol beats inside the hotel as the onlookers cheered them on.

Security arrangements were stepped up in the capital ahead of the team’s arrival. Police personnel conducted checks on the team bus and surrounding routes with sniffer dogs to rule out any potential threat.

The team was accorded a warm send-off at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport where head coach Amol Muzumdar cut a cake to celebrate the team’s win. A sizeable crowd saw them off at the airport.

The players and support staff will leave for their home towns on Wednesday, barring Shafali Verma, who was named captain of the North Zone team for the Senior Inter-Zonal Women’s T20 Trophy that began in Nagaland on Tuesday.

The 21-year-old Shafali was named player of the final for her 87 runs and 2/36 bowling part-time spin. Not part of the original World Cup squad, Shafali got a call-up ahead of the semi-finals to replace injured opener Pratika Rawal.

Six teams will compete in the Senior Women’s Inter Zonal T20 Trophy to be played from November 4-14. The zonal selection committees of the cricket board picked their respective teams.

Unlike the case with the T20 World Cup-winning men’s team, no victory parade has been planned for Harmanpreet and Co as of now with the BCCI top brass currently in Dubai for ICC meetings (Nov 4-7).

Rohit Sharma’s 2024 winning team had celebrated its World Cup triumph with an open bus parade at Mumbai’s Marine Drive last year. However, Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s felicitation function in Bengaluru after the team’s first IPL win was marred by a stampede in which at least 11 people lost their lives.

Congratulations continued to pour in for the team. Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann lauded the team for their historic win. Mann spoke to Harmanpreet, Amanjot Kaur and Harleen Deol – all are from Punjab – through video conferencing and called them the pride of the state.

The Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) on Monday announced cash awards for Harmanpreet and Amanjot Kaur as well as fielding coach Munish Bali. The two cricketers will receive ₹11 lakh each, while Bali will get ₹5 lakh.

BCCI has already announced a cash reward of ₹51 crore for the winning squad, support staff and selection committee.