![Deepti Sharma's redemption arc [Source: @ICC/X.com]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1762699214918_Deepti_Sharma_India_Women_World_Cup.jpg?type=hq)
Deepti Sharma's redemption arc [Source: @ICC/X.com]
Life, as they say, has a funny way of coming full circle. Heartbreak and redemption are often shared on the same cricket pitch. And for Deepti Sharma, that circle closed beautifully in 2025, eight long years after she walked off the field in tears during the 2017 World Cup final.
Back in 2017, a 19-year-old Deepti found herself in the middle of India's biggest moment. The team was chasing 229 to win their maiden Women's World Cup. With 12 runs needed off 11 balls, Deepti tried to clear the infield, only to mistime and hand England the title.
It was a moment that haunted her for years. In a sport where memories are short but scars last long, Deepti Sharma became an unfortunate name tied to "what could have been."
Deepti Sharma silenced the past with glory
But champions don't fade away; they rebuild quietly. And Deepti Sharma did just that. Over the years, she worked on her batting temperament, improved her bowling craft, and went on to become one of India's most dependable all-rounders.
She didn't have it easy, as she lived in the shadow of criticism, self-doubt, and comparisons. Still, she kept coming back, game after game, with one silent desire to revise her story.
Fast forward to the 2025 Women’s World Cup final. India faced South Africa, the same grand stage, the same pressure.
But this time, Deepti Sharma was not the anxious teen; she was the experienced warrior. She scored 58 runs off 58 balls to help India set a total of 298 runs. With the ball, she turned the match upside down, taking five wickets for just 39 runs.
A story of faith, fight, and fate
When the final South African wicket fell, Deepti Sharma charged on to the field, letting out a sigh of relief, as if the universe was aligned and she had finally uncovered her destiny.
She became the first cricketer in history, man or woman, to score a fifty and take a five-wicket haul in a World Cup final.
It wasn't just a performance but poetry in itself. From being labelled a "villain" in 2017 to being hailed as the "hero" of 2025, Deepti's journey embodied everything beautiful about sport: the pain, the patience, and the payoff.
Cricket has always had a way of writing its best stories in redemption ink. And this, Deepti Sharma’s story, might just be one of its finest chapters yet.
