Jemimah and India chase their own 1983 moment at Lord’s
A pivotal member of India’s Cricket World Cup glory believes the team is strongly motivated to create history this summer at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
By Rahul Pandey
There is an almost-instantaneous reaction when Jemimah Rodrigues hears the phrase, the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 Final at Lord’s.
A vivid memory that is seared into the consciousness of Indian cricket flashes and sets the goal for her and the Indian women’s cricket team this summer.
“Kapil Dev and the Indian men’s team won their first-ever World Cup there. We would love to win our first-ever Women’s T20 World Cup there. That would be super cool,” she told ICC.
It hasn’t been long since Rodrigues played an innings of a lifetime, an unbeaten 127 off 134, to take India across the line in an epic ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup semi-final chase against Australia.
The victory was followed by India clinching their maiden title on a euphoric night in Navi Mumbai. Rodrigues believes the triumph has added a steely resolve into the Indian side to put their best foot forward at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in England and Wales.
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“The monkey is off the back,” she said. “But I don't think it's pressure.
“I think it's more motivation because now you've tasted what it feels like to lift one World Cup. It makes you want one more and then one more and then one more.
“So I think the team is even more motivated and even more eager. And more than that, we saw the kind of impact it had for women's cricket in India. We just want to continue that legacy going to England.
“I think this team has character. When you want to win big games, you need people with character, people who are different in their own way, but they have a thing that they'll do anything to win the match. That kind of an attitude. And I think that's great character.
“And that's why in any situation, I believe our team will find a way to win a match.”
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On a personal level, Rodrigues feels the journey to her coming-of-age innings against Australia brought about a cathartic self-realisation.
“I think firstly, the biggest learning for me was because I was going through a lot of anxiety, not doing well, got two ducks in the tournament, was dropped and four years ago, I was dropped from the Cricket World Cup,” she recalled.
“This was my first World Cup. What I realised is that sometimes all you have got to do is show up because life has a way of making all things work together for good.
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Jemimah Rodrigues notched her maiden ICC Women's Cricket World Cup ton to help India seal their place in the Final.
“And I think, those four years actually trained me for such a moment as that, because I had to use all that experience that all the failures in all those years taught me maybe for such a time as that.
“So I think that was my biggest learning, that sometimes, especially when it gets hard and you don't have the strength to run or fly, sometimes all you have to do is just go and stand and God works out everything for you.”
Rodrigues will once again be crucial to India’s push for glory as they eye a maiden T20 World Cup title.
Slotted in Group 1, the Harmanpreet Kaur-led side will go up against Australia, South Africa, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Netherlands.
Their opening challenge will be going up against arch-rivals Pakistan, a contest Rodrigues has fond memories of. When the two teams squared off in the 2023 edition of the T20 World Cup, the right-handed batter had played a decisive role in yet another chase.
In pursuit of 150 runs, Rodrigues scored an unbeaten 53, combining with Richa Ghosh (31*) to see through the chase.
Recalling the chase, the middle-order batter said, “I think in 24 balls we needed 41 runs, which in a World Cup is a lot of pressure, like double the pressure,” she recalled.
“And from there we went out and chased it down. I think that was very special for me and I still remember that.”
Rodrigues and India will eye many more such memories as they kickstart their T20 World Cup campaign on 14 June at Edgbaston, Birmingham.
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