India's Jemimah Rodrigues plays a shot during the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup final match between India and South Africa in Navi Mumbai, India, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)Hero of India’s famous win against Australia in the semifinals was Jemimah Rodrigues her with her knock of 127. But ahead of the final, her father Ivan did make sure, after the herculean task her daughter and the Indian side pulled off, she was in the right mindset and gave the example of MS Dhoni’s attitude and will power.
“I only told Jemimah one thing – attitude. Your attitude is important. Why is Dhoni Sir a legend? Attitude. His calmness, his willpower, and his application on the ground to take the right decision and take the game deep. India went to the next level when Dhoni Sir came. I gave an example of the India-Pakistan match (2007 World T20 Final). Who did he give the last over to? Joginder Sharma. We thought Harbhajan had overs left. The attitude and approach that he has, if you have that, you can win any tournament,” said her father Ivan, speaking to India Today.
“I will be very vulnerable here because someone who is watching this might be going through the same thing. Nobody likes to talk about their weaknesses. I was going through a lot of anxiety at the start of the tournament. It was a lot before a few games… I used to call my mum and cry the entire time, let it all out because when you go through anxiety, you feel numb,” Jemimah said after her 127-run innings.
She added that the experience reminded her of the importance of support from loved ones. “During this time, my mom and dad supported me a lot. There was Smriti, who also helped me… she just knows whose presence is important for me. I am so blessed to have friends who I can call family, that I didn’t have to go through it alone. And it’s okay to ask for help. The other thing that happened with the anxiety thing was when I was dropped from the team — that really hit me. When they drop you, you have a lot of doubts because I always want to contribute to the team. But that day I couldn’t do much… so when you come back in, it’s a lot more pressure. But sometimes all you do is hang in there, and things fall into place.”
Stay updated with the latest sports news across Cricket, Football, Chess, and more. Catch all the action with real-time live cricket score updates and in-depth coverage of ongoing matches.
3 min read
