IND W v SA W | Playing against South Africa brings back memories of debut for India, says Jemimah Rodrigues
India’s opening batswoman, Jemimah Rodrigues, is looking forward to the five-match series against South Africa, saying that it is special to her as she made her national debut against the Proteas. India takes on South Africa in the first T20I at the Lalbhai Contractor Stadium in Surat on Tuesday.
After a successful outing in the Kia Super League in England, Jemimah is looking forward to a new challenge. She fondly remembers her debut for India against the South Africans back in February 2018. Jemimah scored a 27-ball 37 as India coasted to a comfortable seven-wicket win away from home.
“Playing against South Africa is special for me because that’s when I made my debut for India. It would bring back a few memories for me. I am not trying to do anything different,” Jemimah told Sportstar during an interview.
Going into the series, the 19-year-old is in a positive frame of mind, one she is carrying over from her performance for the Yorkshire Diamonds. She finished second among the run-scorers at the KSL with 401 runs – behind only Danielle Wyatt (466).
“I am trying to keep things simple like I did in the KSL and it worked well for me. So I want to continue that same thing even in the South Africa series. I loved batting in England because you won’t get those wickets in India,” Jemimah said.
She further elaborated on her time batting in the middle-order in English conditions. At the KSL, she would bat at No.4, even though she is primarily an opener. “There was one match in Surrey, where the wicket was a bit difficult but other than that I don’t remember any other wicket being challenging or difficult. I really enjoyed batting. And more than anything else, what I will take from this experience is the confidence that I got. Even I didn’t know I could do so well, going on foreign soil and playing with the world’s best cricketers,” she said.Â
“But I was happy I was getting to bat lower down the order because I wouldn’t get this experience in India. When I'm batting one-down I get at least some time, 10 to 15 overs to get myself going, take singles and build an innings,” Jemimah added.
