Mumbai's Jemimah selected for India squad, reveals how she overcame depression

Jemimah Rodrigues (centre), flanked by her father, Ivan, and mother, Lavita with brothers, Enoch (left) and Eli, enjoys a selfie moment at Rang Sharda in Bandra yesterday. Pic/ PRADEEP DHIVAR

When Jemimah Rodrigues, 17, thanked God for her maiden selection into the Indian team yesterday, it wasn't just a casual tribute to the Almighty for recognising her hard work. It was an expression of gratitude, she said, for the success she achieved following a Bible reading habit, which she inculcated not too long ago.

Bandra resident Jemimah Rodrigues, 17, was thrilled to see her name in the Mithali Raj-led 16-member team that was picked for the three ODIs against South Africa women which begins next month. Jemimah, the youngest member of the squad, was selected in the Indian team on the basis of her superlative show in the U-19 tournament for Mumbai and the recent Senior Challenger Trophy. And she credits the Bible, the holy book of Christians, for the transformation in her performance.

Like her family, Jemimah too is a devout Christian, who somehow makes time for church despite her hectic training schedule. However, two years ago, all went downhill for the stylish batswoman, and that's when her Bible-reading began. "I had no performances to show. I was trying everything, but nothing was working for me. I was very low on confidence. At one point, I stopped believing in myself. That's when my parents (dad Ivan and mum Lavita) encouraged me to read some scriptures from the Bible," Jemimah told mid-day after a practice session last evening.

She particularly narrated the Jeremiah 29:11 verse from the Bible: "For I know the plans I have for you… plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." The words had a strong impact on her, she said: "I started to relate this to the tough phase I was going through. I was completely lost and didn't know what my future would be. When I read this, I started to feel better. I thought that when God has not given up on me, why should I? It started thinking positively. I then played the Zonal Cricket Academy matches, where I scored a half century in my third match itself. It was like a new beginning for me," said Jemimah, who hasn't looked back since. She slammed a century (against Gujarat) and an unbeaten 71 (v Central Zone) in the U-23 tournament last year. In the 2016 U-19 season, she hammered two hundreds and five half centuries.

The 2017-18 season was memorable too as she amassed 1013 runs in 11 matches in the Inter-State Women's U-19 one-day tournament. Jemimah began the tournament with a 178 against Gujarat before slamming a double hundred (202 not out) against Saurashtra. In all, she plundered six centuries and a half century. "I became the first batswoman to notch-up 1000-plus runs in U-19 cricket," she said proudly. Soon, she was selected into the India 'A' team for the series against Bangladesh. Thereafter, in the recently-concluded Challenger Trophy, she emerged as the third highest run-getter with 179 runs in three matches for India Green. "I knew I had to be consistent at the senior level if I have to play for India. Playing against top players was a huge learning curve for me. I was aiming for this selection [for the South Africa tour] and I'm very happy to have achieved it," she concluded.

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