02 June,2026 04:18 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues (Pic: File Pic)
The Women's T20 World Cup 2026 is all set to kick off from June 12, with the first game scheduled to be played between England and Sri Lanka at Edgbaston Stadium in Birmingham.
Before the global showpiece, Team India skipper Harmanpreet Kaur spoke about the decision to give a break to Jemimah Rodrigues for the match against England.
Speaking to JioStar, the Indian skipper said things could have gone wrong had she not given Rodrigues a break, as the batter was low on confidence following her poor run in the tournament.
"If we hadn't given a break to Jemimah after the league match against Australia, things might have gone wrong. She didn't have a great start to the ODI World Cup with the bat. The runs weren't coming. Her confidence was dropping. You could see it in her body language. So, we decided to give her a three or four-day break. We kept her out of the England game. But it wasn't about dropping her or giving someone else a chance," she said.
The skipper then said that the management was backing Rodrigues to deliver a crucial knock against New Zealand. Facing 55 balls, she garnered an unbeaten knock of 76 runs. During her knock against the "White Ferns", she smashed 11 boundaries.
"It was purely about Jemimah, giving her the right rest at the right time. Sometimes a break is more valuable than training. She was always in our plans. When we faced New Zealand, Jemimah was always going to be our key player. We trusted her to come back fresh, and she repaid the trust we had shown in her with a crucial knock of 76 runs," added Kaur.
Ahead of the Women's T20 World Cup 2026, the "Women in Blue" will begin their campaign by playing a clash against arch-rivals, Pakistan, on June 14 at Edgbaston Stadium in Birmingham.
Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Bharti Fulmali, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh, Shree Charani, Yastika Bhatia, Nandani Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh, Kranti Gaud, Shreyanka Patil, Radha Yadav.
