Indian woman star cricketer Jemimah Rodriguez revealed that the words from Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant invigorated her and helped her make a comeback to the International cricket.
The cricketer feels that she is blessed to have spoken to Rohit and Pant during the challenging phase of her career. Rodriguez was not a part of the India squad for the Women’s World Cup earlier this year. She is making a return to the national team in the current T20 international series against Sri Lanka. Rodriguez played a crucial knock of 36 runs off 27 balls and guided her team to a respectable total of 138 runs.
“My journey since the last Sri Lanka tour has not been smooth, it had its ups and downs. I have spoken to Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant, they told me these moments will define your career, they told me not to take it (being dropped from the squad before the World Cup) in a negative way,” Jemimah said at the post-match press conference.
“They told me I should take up the challenge and move ahead. I am blessed to have spoken to them.” Coming in to bat at no 5 at the score of 56/3, the batter played a crucial knock and took her team to a defendable total. Rodriguez’s innings included 3 fours and a six. Indian bowlers successfully defended the total and won the match by 34 runs taking a 1-0 lead in the series. Rodriguez was awarded ‘Player of the match’ for her stupendous innings.
Commenting on her innings Rodriguez further said, “This innings means a lot, I was nervous initially but the late cut boundary helped me a lot in easing things up. I am back in the side after 4-5 months or maybe more than that. I was pumped up.”
“I have understood my game better in the four-five months, I have become calmer, I have changed though my height remains the same,” said Jemimah. “I started preparing right after I was dropped.”
The star cricketer further said that the pitch in Dambulla international stadium is similar to the pitches in her hometown ‘Mumbai’, making it easy for her to adapt to these conditions. She also thanked the board for the hospitality the team is getting.
