Wasn't doing well mentally, had a lot of anxiety, Jemimah Rodrigues says after historic knock
Navi Mumbai: Indian cricket’s newest World Cup hero, Jemimah Rodrigues, broke down during the post-match presentation ceremony after guiding India to a historic five-wicket win over Australia in the ICC Women’s World Cup semi-final on Thursday. Fighting back tears, the 25-year-old opened up about her mental health struggles, including anxiety, and how the support of her family, teammates, and faith in God helped her rediscover her strength.
Jemimah’s unbeaten 127 off 134 balls was more than a match-winning knock; it was a story of resilience and faith. “It was really hard this last month, it feels like a dream and it still has not sunk in. Last time, I was dropped from this World Cup. I was in good form. But things kept happening back-to-back and I could not control anything. I have almost cried every day through this tour," a visibly emotional Jemimah said.
Determined to speak honestly about her struggles, Jemimah said she wanted to be vulnerable because she knew others might be facing similar battles. She recalled how anxiety gripped her during the early stages of the tournament, leading to tearful phone calls to her mother. “At the start of the tournament, I was going through a lot of anxiety. I used to call my mom and cry the entire time because when you’re going through anxiety, you just feel numb,” she shared. Having started the campaign with a string of low scores and even being dropped for the match against England, Jemimah admitted that her confidence took a major hit. But she credited her faith, family, and close friends for helping her fight through that dark phase.
During her innings on Thursday, Jemimah constantly motivated herself, engaging in self-talk to stay composed. She later revealed that in the tense final moments, she recited a verse from the Bible to maintain her focus.
“I think initially I was just trying to stay focussed, I just keep talking to myself. But towards the end I was just quoting one scripture from the Bible. Because I had lost energy, I was very tired. I was drained and one scripture that said, "just stand still and God will fight for you". And that's what I did. And I just stood there and he fought for me,” she said, with tears rolling down her cheeks.
She also explained that she didn’t celebrate her century because her focus remained firmly on taking India home. "Today was not about my 50 or my 100. Today was about making India win. I know I got a few chances, but I just feel like God has given everything at the right time and he grew it into the right intention, pure intention. And I just feel everything has happened so far just to sit up for this. You make your own luck," she said after winning the Player of the Match in the big-ticket semi-final.
The star player further spoke about the support she received from her teammates, saying that towards the end she tried to push herself but could barely manage to continue. "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)," added Jemimah.
The ICC shared a five-minute video of Jemimah’s emotional interview on social media, captioned: “A teary Jemimah Rodrigues describes what it means to take India through to the #CWC25 final.” Fans flooded the comments with praise for her openness about mental health. One user wrote, “What a courageous lady! She could have shown her winner’s side, but she chose to show her vulnerable side. The battles she fought in her head. So much honesty. What a role model!”
India’s record-breaking victory over Australia not only sealed their spot in the final but also ignited hopes of a maiden ODI World Cup title. The Women in Blue will face South Africa in the final on November 2 in Navi Mumbai.
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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.
