India’s new No. 3 batter Jemimah Rodrigues was extremely disturbed and disappointed on being dropped for the World Cup league match against England recently, revealed her childhood coach Prashant Shetty. Shetty then had a chat with Rodrigues and chalked out a three-point agenda to help her excel in her comeback game against New Zealand.
“Jemimah was very disturbed because she never expected to be dropped. It was a big setback for her, but my first words to her were, ‘if you’re dropped, you can make a comeback too.’ So, when I learnt that she would be playing [vs NZ], I gave her a three-point agenda to work on. The first point was to ensure she is well prepared for the game. The second goal was that whenever she goes to bat, approach it confidently. Even while walking on to the ground, walk with confidence.
And my third goal for her was that when she plays the first eight to 10 balls, they should be compact. I told her that she should start with singles and if she does hit a boundary, ensure it is hit straight and along the ground [no aerial strokes],” Shetty told mid-day on Friday. Rodrigues did just this during her 55-ball 76 not out in India’s 53-run win over NZ and repeated the act during her unbeaten 127 in the semi-finals against Australia.
“I told her that she should avoid risks because when you have a lot of emotion within you while batting, you tend to do too many things and there are more chances of failure or inconsistency. So, she took her time against NZ and played as per the situation,” said Shetty.
Shetty also revealed that Rodrigues prepared with a tape ball ahead of the World Cup, and that has helped her counter the swing while batting up the order at No.3: “Though she was sent in at No.5 earlier, we prepared to face the new ball too. I made her face tennis balls wrapped in white tape as she tried negotiating the swing.”
Finally, Shetty was all praise for the scoop shot that Rodrigues employed frequently against the Aussies. “The Australians were not expecting her to play those scoop shots. They then focused on bowling on the fourth and fifth stump to avoid the scoop, but this helped Jemimah execute her favourite cut shots. Jemimah capitalised on the situation brilliantly,” Shetty signed off.