Both Jemimah Rodrigues and Shubha Satheesh got their Test caps on Thursday morning at the DY Patil Stadium, but their journey in the game till here couldn’t have been in starker contrast.
Jemimah, a prodigy from her days in Mumbai age-group cricket, had already played 113 times for India at the senior level in white-ball cricket. Shubha, a left-field selection to India’s Test squad after impressing in an intra-squad red-ball game last month in Bengaluru, is a relative unknown who was playing her first-ever senior international.
Jemimah, at 23, has faced enough highs and lows in her career to perhaps fill a book, while Shubha’s story is only beginning. Every time Jemimah – and her teammates – hit a boundary during the day, the broadcaster’s feed featured her face prominently as part of a brand she endorses. For Shubha, the bat face was blank without a sponsor’s sticker.
When they came together to bat on Day 1 of the one-off Test against England though, all that mattered was their compact batting technique and classical strokeplay that saw them add 115 runs, with both scoring half-centuries. After Shubha and Jemimah, it was captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Yastika Bhatia’s turn to put on a century stand. Then came a late rearguard from Deepti Sharma and Sneh Rana for the 7th wicket worth 92 runs.
On India’s homecoming after nine years in the four-day format, that would be a pivotal phase of play as the hosts finished the day at 410/7 – their highest-ever total at home – scoring at more than four runs per over. The tone for the day was set by the two debutants.
Walking in to bat after Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma were dismissed, Shubha and Jemimah never allowed the England bowlers to settle down, peppering the boundary regularly. The early onus was taken by the 24-year-old left-hander from Karnataka, as she opened her account with a delightful square drive for four. Jemimah, who had her family in attendance, took her time to get going but once she hit the pacy Lauren Filer for two off-driven boundaries, she too found her feet. While Shubha preferred peppering the square region either side of the wicket, Jemimah scored heavily through cover and extra-cover.
The shot of the day arguably was Shubha’s straight drive off Kate Cross to bring up her fifty, at better than a run a ball, while Jemimah’s boundary through extra cover off Lauren Bell to bring up her own milestone wasn’t too far off either. The run rate never sagged during their stand as boundaries kept flowing. Around the 30-over mark when India crossed 150, they had hit more boundaries than taken singles.
A chance to shine
Shubha has been around the domestic circuit for a while. Hailing from Mysore, she started playing cricket when she was 12. Having moved to Railways after turning out for Karnataka, playing time hasn’t been easy to come by. But over the last few weeks, it’s been good news galore.
First, her performances in the practice match, then a call-up to the Test squad, then a Women’s Premier League contract with Royal Challengers Bangalore. “It’s just happening. I can say it’s just my time. I see only the good side of it right now. It just feels amazing. one after the other good news coming. I’ve been on the domestic circuit for 6-7 years now and getting an Indian call-up was just like living a dream. I didn’t really think of proving anything. I just had to play good cricket. That’s all I know and that’s all I believe in,” Shubha said after the day’s play.
While they might be at different points in their careers, Shubha added that having played age-group cricket with Jemimah, there was a familiarity that helped. What’s more, while Jemimah grew up playing hockey in Mumbai, Shubha was the hockey captain of her school team as well. In those wristy drives and flicks, both of them showcased their stick skills as well.
Making family proud
For Jemimah, it’s been a rollercoaster getting here but playing a Test match was always high on her checklist. In an interview with JioCinema, she recalled how those who knew her thought Tests would be her best format. She also added how the cornerstones of her journey have been her parents, remembering how her mother used to massage her father’s shoulders after he’d spend a day bowling 300 throwdowns to her for practice. It was fitting then that father Ivan and mother Lavita were around to greet their daughter after she was given the Test cap by close friend Smriti.
Both Shubha and Jemimah would feel a tinge of disappointment in getting dismissed when looking good for much more, but their dismissals brought Harmanpreet and Yastika together for another stroke-filled partnership. It involved a bit more luck as both batters had close calls, but it prevented England launching a fightback.
One short of what would have been her first fifty in the format, Harmanpreet was run out in a manner that brought flashbacks of her nightmare from the T20 World Cup earlier this year. Yastika would soon follow.
Then it was over to Deepti to show her long-format skills, as she has now scored a half-century in England, Australia, and India in the three Tests she has played. Sneh, who was unbeaten on 80 in a rearguard match-saving effort the last time these two sides met in Bristol, contributed a solid 30 that frustrated Heather Knight’s tiring side.
It was a day of well-constructed partnerships for India, but the one that stood out was between the two debutants.
Brief scores: India 410/7 in 94 overs (Shubha Satheesh 69, Jemima Rodrigues 68, Yastika Bhatia 66, Deepti Sharma 60*, Harmanpreet Kaur 49) vs England (Lauren Bell 2-64)
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