Jhulan and her team-mates today returned home to a warm reception here and they recalled their experiences of the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup in England, where they ended as runners-up, creating waves in the country.
India let slip of the title as they wilted under pressure to lose the final by nine runs but Jhulan said being runners- up was still a big thing for the women's game in the country.
"The way ICC conducted this World Cup and promoted women's cricket. A new road will be there for women's cricket and all will play an important role," said 34-year-old Jhulan.
Jhulan, the most experienced bowler for India, also praised seamers Mansi Joshi and Shikha Pandey, terming them as match winners.
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"Mansi did not get chances in this tournament. She has the spark and swings the balls well. She must improve her fitness level and can carry the legacy. Both she and Shikha are good bowlers and hopefully we will get good fast bowlers," said Jhulan, the highest wicket-taker in the women's game.
"There was pressure, we had made a lot of preparation. I was practising the last two years, how to open, how to play in the power play. In England, the wickets are different and ball swings, and then rains.
"We have to play in that conditions which were different from India. Our preparation was done accordingly. We went 10- 12 days in advance, and that helped us to acclimatise to the conditions," the opener told reporters.
"Yes, we felt good, the rousing reception was not expected. The way our team has played, we deserved it," she added.
Deepti Sharma, who bowls off-spin, said she executed her role to perfection.
"I knew that what was my role, so was doing accordingly. I needed to work on dot balls and I just did that. In batting, I had to work on partnerships and rotate strike and I did that," she said.
Batswoman Smriti Mandana, who hails from Sangli in Western Maharashtra, said playing the final at Lord's was a dream come true.
Big hitter Harmanpreet Kaur, whose sensational innings of 171 not out took against Australia took India to the final, attributed her success to Big Bash League of Australia.
"I like to bat aggressive, and I think all that helped in the Big Bash, In Big Bash, there were a lot of players. I learned from there, which helped me in South Africa and England. The way I and Smriti (Mandana) got chances, two-three more players should get chance (in Big Bash), which will be beneficial for the team," said Harmapreet.
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