When cricket met courage: The Jemimah Rodrigues story

From being rejected for being “a girl” and “tiny” to becoming India’s run machine — this is the story of Jemimah Rodrigues.

Transcript

00:00From a Mumbai Gymkhana membership getting revoked to smashing pointless critics with a bat,

00:09this is the story of Jamima Rodriguez. The dancer, the singer, the hockey player

00:18and of course the run machine. Jamima debuted for Maharashtra's

00:23under-19 team at just 12. At 16, she was just a fan in the crowd, waiting to welcome the

00:27women's team home after a loss at Lord's in 2017. Little did she know what the future

00:32had in store for her. Born on September 5, 2000, in Mumbai, Jamima

00:41was raised in a Mangalorean Christian family with two brothers, Enoch and Eli. Jamima said

00:45that growing up, she never knew women's cricket existed. However, she developed a liking for

00:49cricket while watching her brother play and her father, Ivan Rodriguez, trained young cricketers.

00:54She was 8 when she went to enroll at the academy where her brother played. Jamima's second

00:57said she was rejected for being a girl and tiny. But she persisted and soon earned her

01:02place at an academy. God made you. They don't know what God has put inside of you. So let

01:07them not define who you are. A few years later, Rodri has made her debut in 2018.

01:113, 2, 1. Her journey has been one of steady growth, though not without its share of setbacks.

01:17Even before I could play for India, there were a lot of talks about me. At the 2025 World Cup,

01:22Jamima said she cried every night, overwhelmed by the pressure. Getting dropped for a few games,

01:27when India needed an extra bowler, made it even tougher. In 2024 too, her exclusion

01:32from major tournaments had left her battling self-doubt. Meanwhile, she also faced trolling

01:36for making reels online. In October, the same year, the Mumbai Khar-Jim Khanna controversy made

01:41things even harder. The club revoked her honorary membership after complaints alleged that her

01:46father, Ivan Rodriguez, had used the premises for unauthorized religious gatherings. But Jamima

01:50weathered every storm while staying open about her mental health, strumming her guitar, singing her heart out

01:55with a smile that made her a fan favourite.