SL-W vs IND-W | Jemimah Rodrigues recalls Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant's 'words of wisdom'

Swashbuckling Indian batter Jemimah Rodrigues recalled words of wisdom she received from fellow cricketers Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant after she won the 'Player of the Match' award against Sri Lanka in what was her first appearance in Indian colours since getting dropped.

Rodrigues was overlooked for the recent 50-over World Cup in New Zealand following an extended lean patch in international cricket.

During this wilderness phase, not only did she learn a lot about her game, the 21-year-old reached out to Rohit and Rishabh, who urged her to take the challenge head-on.

"My journey since the last Sri Lanka tour has not been smooth. It had its ups and downs. I have spoken to Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant; they told me these moments will define your career; they told me not to take it (being dropped from the squad before the World Cup) in a negative way," said Jemimah in the post-match conference after her match-winning 27-ball 36* in the 1st T20I against Sri Lanka.

"They told me I should take up the challenge and move ahead. I am blessed to have spoken to them.

I have understood my game better in the four-five months, I have become calmer, I have changed though my height remains the same," she added.

Jemimah forced her way back into the national team following stellar performances in the Women's Hundred, WBBL and the recent Women's T20 Challenge, where she scored 90 runs in 2 innings at a strike-rate of 138.46.

On Thursday, Rodrigues came at a time when India was in need of a strong finish. 

Though by her own admission, she was nervous to start with, it didn't look that way at all. The right-hander peeled off 36 unbeaten runs in 27 deliveries with the help of 3 four and a six to help India post 138/6 in 20.

"I started preparing right after I was dropped. This innings means a lot, I was nervous initially but the late cut boundary helped me a lot in easing things up. I am back in the side after 4-5 months or maybe more than that. I was pumped up," she said.

Her cameo proved to be the clincher in the end as the Indian spinner choked the Lankan batters into submission to hand their side a comprehensive 34-run win.