Women's ODI World Cup History Explained: Australia Dominance, Mithali Raj, and 2022 NZ Final
The ICC Women's Cricket World Cup history — Australia's record 7 titles (most by any team), the 2022 Final (Australia beat England at Christchurch), Mithali Raj's record India ODI runs (7,805), how the Women's World Cup format compares to the men's, and the growth of women's cricket from the 1973 inaugural edition (pre-dating the men's WC) to the modern global competition.
The ICC Women's Cricket World Cup is the premier women's ODI cricket tournament. The inaugural Women's Cricket World Cup (1973, England) preceded the men's inaugural World Cup by 2 years — making it the older of the two major cricket World Cups. The competition has been held approximately every 4 years since 1973. Australia are the most successful team with 7 World Cup titles (1978, 1982, 1988, 1997, 2005, 2013, 2022). India were runners-up twice (2005, 2017) before winning their first title in 2025 (beat South Africa 52 runs, Navi Mumbai). England have won four times (1973, 1993, 2009, 2017); New Zealand won once (2000).
World Cup History: Results and Records
Women's Cricket World Cup results: (1) 1973 (England): England won (inaugural tournament). The competition predated the men's tournament. 7 teams participated. Rachael Heyhoe-Flint was England's captain — one of the foundational figures of women's cricket; (2) 1978 (India): Australia won; (3) 1982 (New Zealand): Australia won; (4) 1988 (Australia): Australia won; (5) 1993 (England): England won; (6) 1997 (India): Australia won; (7) 2000 (New Zealand): New Zealand won; (8) 2005 (South Africa): Australia won the Final (beat India); (9) 2009 (Australia): England won; (10) 2013 (India): Australia won (beat West Indies); (11) 2017 (England): England won the Final (beat India at Lord's — after India had beaten Australia in the semi-final. The India-England Lord's Final 2017 attracted the highest women's cricket crowd at Lord's to that point); (12) 2022 (New Zealand): Australia won the Final (beat England at Christchurch, April 3, 2022) — Australia's 7th title; (13) 2025 (India): India won their first-ever Women's World Cup title — beat South Africa by 52 runs in the final at DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai (November 2, 2025).
Mithali Raj: The Bradman of Women's Cricket
Mithali Raj (born December 3, 1982, Jodhpur): (1) Career stats: 7,805 ODI runs (the most by any player in Women's ODI cricket history — male or female — until surpassed by Meg Lanning) at 51.69 average, 7 ODI centuries; 69 Test runs in 12 Tests at 43 average; (2) India captaincy: Mithali captained India in multiple Women's World Cups, reaching 2 Finals (2005 and 2017). The 2017 World Cup Final (India lost to England by 9 runs at Lord's — India needed 228 to win, finished 219) was considered the closest India had come to winning the Women's WC — until India finally won their first Women's World Cup in 2025 (beat South Africa by 52 runs in Navi Mumbai); (3) Retirement: Mithali retired from all international cricket in June 2022 — after leading India's cricket development for two decades; (4) Legacy: Mithali's impact on Indian women's cricket: she played her first international match at age 16 (1999, ODI vs Ireland) and represented India for 23 years. Her consistency with the bat (51.69 ODI average) is remarkable for such a long career; (5) Comparison: Mithali scored more runs in Women's ODI cricket than any other player in history — a record held until Meg Lanning (Australia) overtook it. Lanning herself retired in 2024 after scoring 7,958+ Women's ODI runs at 45.56 average.
Women's Cricket's Commercial Growth
Women's cricket's commercial trajectory: (1) The 2023 Women's T20 World Cup (South Africa): the final (South Africa vs Australia) attracted significant television audiences. The 2023 WWT20 Final was Australia's 6th T20 WC title vs South Africa in their first Final — Australia won; (2) The WPL (Women's Premier League — India): India launched the WPL in 2023 — the women's equivalent of the IPL. The inaugural WPL auction saw top players go for significant prices (Smriti Mandhana, who joined Royal Challengers Bangalore). The WPL directly increased Indian women's cricket's commercial profile and player earnings; (3) The WBBL (Women's Big Bash League, Australia): launched in 2015, the WBBL is the most established women's franchise T20 league. It has produced significant talent development and increased women's cricket's domestic profile in Australia; (4) Pay parity: Cricket Australia announced pay parity (equal match fees for women and men centrally contracted players) in 2022 — the first major cricket board to do so. The ECB and BCCI have moved toward pay parity targets in subsequent years; (5) ICC TV rights: the ICC Women's events (World Cup, T20 World Cup) are now sold as part of the main ICC rights packages — ensuring women's cricket reaches the same broadcast distribution as men's cricket in most ICC markets.
Frequently asked questions
How many Women's World Cups has Australia won?
Australia have won the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 7 times: 1978, 1982, 1988, 1997, 2005, 2013, and 2022. They are the most successful team. England have won 4 times (1973, 1993, 2009, 2017). New Zealand won in 2000. India won their first title in 2025 (beat South Africa 52 runs, DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai — November 2, 2025), after finishing runners-up in 2005 and 2017.
Who has scored the most Women's ODI runs?
Mithali Raj (India) held the record for most Women's ODI runs (7,805 at 51.69 average) until Meg Lanning (Australia) overtook her. Lanning retired from international cricket in 2024 with 7,958+ Women's ODI runs. Both players are considered the two greatest women's ODI batsmen of their era. Mithali played for India from 1999 to 2022 (23 years), captaining India in 2 Women's World Cup Finals. Lanning captained Australia to multiple World Cup titles (2013, 2022 ODI WC; 2014, 2018, 2020, 2023 T20 WC).
When was the first Women's Cricket World Cup?
The first Women's Cricket World Cup was held in 1973 — in England, 2 years before the first men's ODI World Cup (1975). England hosted and won the inaugural tournament. 7 teams participated. Rachael Heyhoe-Flint captained England (she had been the driving force behind organizing the inaugural Women's WC). The 1973 Women's WC is therefore historically the first cricket World Cup ever held — pre-dating the more famous 1975 men's inaugural tournament. The Women's WC has been held approximately every 4 years since 1973.