The 22-year-old right-handed hitter, who recovered from a wrist injury that ruled her out of the recent England series, hit 76 of 53 with 11 fours and a six to lay the foundation for the 41 from India. -Run to win.
“The wicket was tricky, it stayed on the bottom side, at first it didn’t spin, but then it spun. But I had prepared well for that, even in Bangalore, I asked for slower, spinning wickets This preparation has really helped me here,” Rodrigues said after the game.
After scoring her career best, Jemimah Rodrigues talks about her recovery and rehabilitation at the NCA. Similar training… https://t.co/2gg6JHC85Y
— AsianCricketCouncil (@ACCMedia1) 1664625556000
“I would like to thank Mumbai – the heat is the same here as where I am staying in Mumbai.”
She said she was looking forward to playing after not touching the bat for six weeks (due to injury).
“It was hard not doing what I love and seeing everyone doing it. But everyone helped me, my parents, my coaches and my coaches, I wanted to thank them. Nothing like to come back and play for India,” said Rodrigues, who was voted player of the match.
“We’ll take the win and take the positives from it. The bowlers did really well – everyone and that’s what we are as a team. That’s the trust we’re going to build on. The conversation before the tournament was ‘we set the standard and we want to raise it further’.”
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur said his team was 20 points short but felt it was a learning process.
“We didn’t start well, but those crucial outings and we kept getting wickets. We’re happy because not many of our bowlers got up, especially Deepti Sharma“said Harmanpreet.
“After losing crucial wickets, after losing my wicket, we were 20 points short. If Jemi and I had gone on, we would have looked at 200, but it’s a learning process for us as a team.”
She praised Rodrigues for his blow in his return match.
“Jemi (Jemimah) played very well, that’s what we expected of her. It wasn’t easy after coming back from injury, but we supported her during her difficult times and she also worked hard in the NCA.”
Chasing 151, Sri Lanka were dismissed for 109 in 18.2 overs and captain Chamari Athapaththu said his side lost a few wickets in crucial moments and regretted outings.
“Jemimah struck very well in these conditions and we have to stick to our plans for the next few games. The offs have affected us and we have to focus on the race between the wickets.”
