India batter Jemimah Rodrigues has opened up about the emotional struggles she faced during the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025, revealing how the pressure of playing a home World Cup and being dropped from the playing XI for a crucial match left her devastated.
Speaking on JioStar’s ‘Unstoppable’ ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, Jemimah admitted that she was not in the best mental space even before the tournament began, as the expectations surrounding a home World Cup started weighing heavily on her.
“For some reason, even before the World Cup started, I was not doing well mentally. Maybe it was because it was a home World Cup, and with the expectations that come with it. And it being a World Cup, the pressure doubles,” Jemimah said.
Things got even tougher when she was dismissed for a first-ball duck in India’s opening match.
“In the very first match, I got out for a duck off the first ball itself. That really broke me; it crushed me. The worst part was that it started affecting my fielding as well. I am someone who enjoys fielding, but I was putting so much pressure on myself that I wasn’t able to move the way I normally do. I made a few misfields, which I usually wouldn’t,” she added.
With India struggling in the tournament after consecutive defeats, Jemimah said a brief but impactful innings against Australia helped restore some of her confidence before a must-win clash against England.
“Then came the league game against Australia, where I scored an impactful 33-odd at a good strike rate. That gave me some confidence, and I told myself, ‘Okay, fine. The England game is very important. Let’s do whatever it takes to win against England,’” she said.
“I really wanted to do it for the team because the World Cup was at stake, and we had already lost two games in a row. That game was crucial,” she added.
However, on the day of the England match, Jemimah received disappointing news from head coach Amol Muzumdar.
“Amol sir messaged me saying, ‘I need to talk to you.’ Then, at the ground, I was told that I had been dropped from the team for that game. I was broken inside,” she revealed.
Despite the setback, India recovered strongly in the tournament. The team defeated New Zealand to qualify for the semifinals, stunned Australia in the last four and then beat South Africa in the final to win the Women’s World Cup title.
Jemimah played a key role in India’s successful campaign. After returning to the side, she produced one of the finest innings of her career, scoring an unbeaten 127 in the semifinal against Australia to guide India into the final.
The right-hander finished the tournament with 292 runs from seven innings at an average of 58.40, overcoming a difficult start to make a major contribution to India’s historic World Cup triumph. @Mitali Gautam pls publish