10 June,2026 06:21 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Jemimah Rodrigues and Sachin Tendulkar (File Pics)
Indian batter Jemimah Rodrigues has revealed that a phone call from cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar allowed her to refocus after feeling completely overwhelmed by her match-winning performance in the women's ODI World Cup semifinal against Australia last year.
Rodrigues played a brilliant innings, remaining unbeaten on 127 to guide India past the dominant Australian side on their way to a historic maiden world title in Navi Mumbai. She said that Tendulkar's timely guidance was instrumental in keeping her eyes on the ultimate prize.
"Sachin sir called, my coach Prashant Shetty. He asked him to tell me that he understood the past couple of days had been a lot for me, the big knock against Australia in the semifinal, the joy of beating them," Rodrigues told JioHotstar.
"But he reminded me that the job was not over yet. We still had a final to win. He said, 'try to put that aside and start from zero'. That message really helped me reset my mind. I understood that what you did before does not win you the next game. You must treat every match as a new start. That advice from a legend gave me so much clarity before the final," she added.
During the final match against South Africa, a dominant all-round performance by Shafali Verma (87 runs and 2/36) proved to be the turning point for Team India. The Indian opener shared that an encouraging conversation with her father provided the perfect motivation right before the game.
"We had two off days before the final. My dad sent me a voice note. He said, 'Just work hard. Give your best on the field, and it has to be in writing that Shafali Verma helped India win the World Cup," Shafali said.
"That voice note gave me (some) extra fire. I knew I had to perform not just for myself, but for him and for the team. It pushed me to give everything I had on the field," she added.
The reigning ODI world champions are currently preparing ahead of their highly anticipated T20 World Cup opener against rivals Pakistan in Birmingham this Sunday.
(With PTI inputs)
