Harmanpreet, Jemimah reflect on India’s historic Women’s World Cup triumph
India captain Harmanpreet Kaur, coach Amol Muzumdar and batter Jemimah Rodrigues reflected on the team’s historic ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup triumph, discussing mental struggles, the painful England defeat, dressing-room conversations and staying away from social media during high-pressure tournaments
Hyderabad: Team India, with its ‘never say die’ attitude, scripted history by winning its maiden ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup title last year after staging a tremendous comeback and will now be eyeing an encore in the upcoming ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026.
Speaking on JioStar’s ‘Unstoppable’, India captain Harmanpreet Kaur, head coach Amol Muzumdar and batter Jemimah Rodrigues reflected on Team India’s inspiring campaign, sharing their thoughts on the loss against England, mental struggles and staying away from social media.
Jemimah Rodrigues opened up about her mental struggles even before the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025.
“For some reason, even before the World Cup started, I was not doing well mentally. Maybe it was because it was a home World Cup and because of the expectations that come with it. And with it being a World Cup, the pressure doubles. In the very first match, I got out for a duck off the very first ball. That really broke me, it crushed me,” she said.
“The worst part was that it started affecting my fielding as well. I am someone who enjoys fielding, but I was putting so much pressure on myself that I wasn’t able to move the way I normally do. I made a few misfields, which I usually wouldn’t,” Jemimah said.
On being dropped for the England game, the star cricketer said: “I kept wondering, ‘What is happening? Why is this happening?’ Then came the league game against Australia, where I scored an impactful 33 at a good strike rate. That gave me some confidence, and I told myself, ‘Okay, fine.’
“The England game is very important. Let’s do whatever it takes to win against England.’ I really wanted to do it for the team because the World Cup was at stake, and we had already lost two games in a row. That game was crucial. Amol sir messaged me saying, ‘I need to talk to you.’ Then, at the ground, I was told that I had been dropped from the team for that game. I was broken inside,” she said.
India head coach Amol Muzumdar looked back at the narrow four-run loss against England in the league phase.
“Obviously, I was disappointed with the loss against England; it goes without saying. We were so close, and especially in that game, it felt like the match was completely in our back pockets. When somebody snatches that away from you, it hurts deeply, and I think it affected us in the wrong way. I remember sitting in the dugout and saying that we had put in an honest effort so far. So, let’s have an honest conversation about this,” he explained.
India captain Harmanpreet Kaur shared her thoughts on the head coach’s address to the team after the England game.
“After the England match, I think Amol sir was the only one who spoke, and he was very straightforward. Everybody took it in the right spirit because we all knew there was nothing wrong in what he was saying,” she said.
“That was the first time I saw his voice go a little high because he is usually a very soft-spoken person. I remember him saying, ‘Go and buy a mirror and see what you’re doing and what you need to do at that stage,’” Harmanpreet said.
On staying away from social media during a big tournament, Harmanpreet said: “I don’t use social media much because I think it can drain you mentally. So, I don’t read stuff, especially during tournaments, whether I’m doing well or not. I don’t like to read too much into it. Maybe after the tournament.
“I go through a few things, which I think are important. Because I also know that if I’m doing well, I know I’m doing well, and if I’m not doing well, I don’t need to read what others are thinking or take advice from everyone,” she said.
