India batter Smriti Mandhana has revealed that former India captain MS Dhoni sent her a WhatsApp message after India’s historic Women’s ODI World Cup triumph in 2025.
India defeated South Africa by 52 runs in the final at Navi Mumbai on November 2, 2025, to win their maiden Women’s ODI World Cup title. Dhoni congratulated Mandhana and asked her to convey his wishes to the entire team.
Speaking at a promotional event alongside Dhoni, Mandhana said she was delighted to receive the message, knowing that the former India captain does not use his phone very often.
Mandhana said, “He actually did send me a message after the World Cup win. I know he doesn’t use his phone a lot. I was very happy that he used WhatsApp to congratulate all of us.”
Dhoni revealed why he texted Mandhana, “I didn’t know anyone else’s (number) from the team. I wanted the message to go through. We had just shot (a commercial) before that. I thought, ‘Let me send a message to Smriti’, and I mentioned, ‘Please wish everyone who is part of the team.”
The former Indian skipper added, “It (the World Cup triumph) is a big thing. It changes how Indian women’s cricket moves forward. Not only the fact that you have brought a big trophy for the country. It’s the fact that these girls paved the way for future ladies and how they would look at cricket and treat it as a profession.”
Meanwhile, India posted 298/7 while batting first, with Shafali Verma scoring 87 runs and Deepti Sharma contributing 58. Deepti then picked up five wickets as South Africa were bowled out for 246 despite captain Laura Wolvaardt’s century.
