Faith, fire, folded hands and a flying kiss: Jemimah Rodrigues' incredible night
Navi Mumbai (PTI): The runs flowed, and so did the emotions. Jemimah Rogrigues didn't celebrate her hundred. There was no fist pump, no roar.
The smile and tears of joy came only after the winning hit, in a record-breaking chase that sent India storming into their second Women’s World Cup final.
Rodrigues stood still for a moment, her eyes glistening under the floodlights. This was more than just a match-winning hundred — it was a moment of deliverance.
The emotions, unknown anxiety had probably pent up inside her for the longest time and the devout Christian that she is, it was only faith in Jesus Christ that saw Jemimah play one of the greatest innings played in the history of a knock-out World Cup game.
"Towards the end, I was just quoting a scripture from the Bible - to just stand still and that God will fight for me," an emotionally drained out Jemimah said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
Panned a lot for not living up to the lofty expectations from her, the Mumbai girl's 127 in a world record chase would be remembered till time immemorial.
"I have almost cried every day through this tour. Not doing well mentally, going through anxiety. I knew I had to show up, and God took care of everything. Initially, I was just playing and I keep talking to myself," a teary-eyed Jemimah was hardly able to express her emotions.
Coming from a family where faith holds supreme, it wasn't surprising that Jemimah turned to the Almighty to take her through.
"I just stood there and he fought for me. A lot inside me was left, but was trying to stay calm. I want to thank Jesus, could not do this on my own."
As she threw a flying kiss towards her family sitting in the VIP stands, she thanked his dad and coach Ivan, who has been her guiding force.
"I want to thank my mom, dad and coach and every single person who believed in me. It was really hard this last month, it feels like a dream and it still has not sunk in."
It was an innings which had taken a toll on her emotionally as much as it sapped her physically.
"Towards the end, I was trying to push myself but was not able to. Deepti spoke to me every ball and kept encouraging me. Richa came and lifted me up.
"When I cannot carry on, my teammates can encourage me. Cannot take credit for anything, I did not do anything (on my own). Each and every member of the crowd who chanted, cheered and believed, and for every run they were cheering, that pumped me up."
In fact, Jemimah didn't even celebrate her hundred and only let it rip once the match was over.
"Today was not about my fifty or my hundred, about making India win. Everything that happened so far, was a setup for this. Last year, I was dropped from this World Cup. I was in good form. But things kept happening back-to-back, and could not control anything," she added.
She also didn't know five minutes prior to walking out that she would be batting at No. 3 on the day which will probably change the course of her career forever.
"I was taking a shower and just told them to let me know. Five minutes before entering in, I was told I was batting at three. When Harry di came, it was all about one good partnership."
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Ex-PM Devegowda warns opposition of electoral losses if they continue to allege 'vote chori'
New Delhi (PTI): Former Prime Minister H D Devegowda on Monday said the Opposition parties would "suffer" if they continue to raise allegations of "vote chori" and create suspicion in the minds of voters by blaming Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.
Participating in a discussion on election reforms in the Rajya Sabha, he criticised the Opposition for making a mockery about the Prime Minister "in the streets and on the public platform".
"This (India) is a very big country. A large country. Congress may be in three states. Remember my friends please, by using the words 'vote chori' you are going to suffer in the coming days. You are not going to win the battle," Devegowda said, referring to the Opposition members.
He asked what the Opposition is going to earn by "blaming Narendra Modi's leadership and creating a suspicion in the mind of the voters" through the claims of "vote chori".
"What has happened to their minds? Let them rectify," Devegowda said.
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The former prime minister said that during his over seven decades of public life, he has never raised such issues of vote theft despite facing defeat in elections.
He also cited a letter written by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru regarding inclusion of "18,000 votes" (voters) in Kerala.
"Why I am telling this (because) during the Nehru period also, there were certain lapses in the electoral system," said Devegowda, who was the prime minister between June 1, 1996 and April 21, 1997.
He said that the Congress party faced defeat in the recent Bihar elections despite raising the issues of mistakes in the electoral rolls.
"What happened after that even after so much review (of voters list). Think (for) yourself! You got six MLAs," the senior Janata Dal (Secular) leader said.
Devegowda questioned the Opposition as to why they want to make allegations against the prime minister on the issue of the voters list?
"Election Commission is there. Supreme Court is there. The Election Commission has given direction to all the state units to rectify all these things," he said.
Devegowda said people of the country have full confidence in Narendra Modi's government and it will come back to power after the next Lok Sabha elections as well.
K R Suresh Reddy, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) party's Rajya Sabha member from Telangana, said that electoral reforms are the backbone for a healthy democracy.
He said a large and diverse nation like Indi needs clean electoral rolls.
Asserting that strict re-verification should not become a mechanism for exclusion, Reddy said no eligible voter should lose their right to vote simply because accessing paperwork is difficult.
He said while the concern definitely is on the voters' exclusion, "we should also be equally concerned about the percentage of voting."
"What is happening in voting today? Once the election ends, the drama begins. The biggest challenge that the Indian democracy has been facing in spite of two major Constitutional amendments has been the anti-defection. Anti-defection is the name of the game today, especially in smaller states, especially where the legislatures are small in number," Reddy said.
The senior BRS leader suggested creation of a parliamentary committee "which would constantly look into the defection" and "ways and means to cutting that".
AIADMK's M Thambidurai raised the issues related to election campaigning.
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"Election campaigns are one of the important election processes. In that, political parties must be given the proper chance to campaign," he said and cited problems faced by his party in Tamil Nadu in this regard.
Thambidurai said political parties were facing hardships in Tamil Nadu to conduct public meetings and to express their views to the public.
YSRCP's Yerram Venkata Subba Reddy stressed on bringing electoral reforms at both the state and national levels.
He also suggested replacing Electronic Voting Machines with paper ballots in all future elections.
"EVM may be efficient but can't be trusted. Paper ballot may not be efficient but can be trusted. You need trust in democracy," Reddy added.
