Indian women’s cricket team vice-captain Smriti Mandhana and Palash Muchhal have finally broken their silence on their postponed wedding and confirmed that it has been called off. The two took to Instagram stories to put an end to all the speculation that has been making headlines over the past week.
Fresh off their maiden ICC Women’s World Cup win at home on November 2, Mandhana and Palash were scheduled to tie the knot on November 23 in Sangli, Maharashtra. The couple also celebrated pre-wedding rituals with the participation of Mandhana’s co-stars from India.
But on the day of the wedding, Mandhana’s father, Srinivas Mandhana, had to be admitted to the hospital due to a heart attack. This was followed by Mandhana and Palash deleting almost all their posts related to the wedding and engagement on social media.
In fact, Mandhana also deleted Palash’s proposal video shot at the DY Patil Stadium, which hosted the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 final. Like Mandhana, her teammates who joined her for the wedding also deleted all wedding-related posts from their respective social media, adding to speculations about Palash’s alleged infidelity.
Was Jemimah’s sudden withdrawal from the WBBL a sign?
While the removal of posts related to the wedding of Mandhana and her teammates gave everyone a clue, the return of Jemimah Rodrigues from Australia in the middle of the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) added fuel to the fire. Rodrigues played three matches for the Brisbane Heat.
Rodrigues flew to India after the Brisbane Heat’s match against the Hobart Hurricanes. During what was believed to be her short trip to India, Rodrigues was scheduled to join its WBBL franchise in the last week of November.
However, she asked to be released from the franchise, which they agreed to without hesitation. “Brisbane Heat have agreed to a request to release Jemimah Rodrigues from the remainder of the Women’s Big Bash League,” the franchise said in a statement on November 27.
“Rodrigues returned home to India after the Heat’s match against the Hobart Hurricanes 10 days ago as part of a pre-arranged commitment to attend the wedding of India teammate Smriti Mandhan last weekend.
However, the celebrations were subsequently postponed due to a health issue with Mandhana’s father. Rodrigues will remain in India to support her teammate and the Heat have agreed not to return for the final four matches of the WBBL season,” it added.
