A miserable return of 32 runs from three innings, without a single score crossing 20, is the type of stark statistic that usually invites immediate selection scrutiny in the high-octane tournament like the T20 World Cup. Yet, in the wake of a damaging six-wicket defeat to South Africa on Sunday, India head coach Amol Muzumdar chose to shield his struggling number three by drawing on a very powerful, very recent memory.
For Muzumdar, tournament statistics are merely background noise when weighed against proven big-match pedigree. Despite Jemimah Rodrigues’ evident struggle for fluency in England so far, culminating in a laboured 12 off 14 balls that stalled India’s momentum in Manchester, the coach remains entirely unfazed. The reason is simple: India have been here before with the 25-year-old Mumbai batter.
Only last year, during the home ODI World Cup, Rodrigues endured a similarly lean run before producing one of the greatest knockout innings in the history of the women’s game. Dropped from the XI at one stage of that tournament, she returned to smash a magical, unbeaten 127 in Navi Mumbai, piloting India through a world-record chase of 339 to stun Australia in the semi-final. It is precisely that blueprint of late-tournament deliverance that the team management is banking on now.
“You have thrown the stats just now on me, but nothing of concern as far as I’m concerned,” Muzumdar said, launching an unflinching defence.
“Jemy is a clutch player for us. We know for a fact that if she comes good, she’ll win us a game. The scores haven’t reflected the talent that she has, but I’m sure, in the coming days, she’ll come along.”
Maintaining that faith will test the management’s resolve. Rodrigues’ recent form line makes for grim reading, yielding just a solitary fifty-plus score in her last nine international outings. With the technically sound Yastika Bhatia and the dynamic Bharti Fulmali waiting in the wings, eager for an opportunity, the clamour to shake up a stagnant middle order will only grow louder outside the camp.
2 MORE GAMES, 2 MORE WINS?
Muzumdar’s protective posture, however, extended across the entire team sheet, even to a fielding display that severely undermined India’s defence of 158. The usually reliable Radha Yadav endured a nightmare afternoon, dropping two critical catches that allowed Marizanne Kapp to target the boundaries with impunity.
Acknowledging the visceral reaction such errors evoke among a passionate fanbase back home, Muzumdar did not hide the raw emotion of the dugout. “My hand stays like this on my face, and it stays like that only. It happens inside,” he admitted candidly. “But Radha has been an exceptional, world-class fielder. She’s a strong character, and I’m sure somewhere in this tournament she’ll make up for it.”
Of greater tactical concern to onlookers is India’s habit of losing wickets in clusters during the middle overs and dropped catches – frailties exposed in all three group matches. But where critics see a structural flaw, Muzumdar views it as the inevitable cost of doing business under India’s mandated fearless tactical blueprint.
The defeat leaves India on a tightrope, turning their final two league fixtures into absolute must-win encounters if they are to secure a semi-final berth. Yet, ahead of a daunting clash against powerhouse Australia, the Indian camp refuses to press the panic button, secure in the knowledge that their ultimate big-match player is only one innings away from turning the tide.
“Of course, it was a big game. There’s no doubt about it. But we still have 2 more games to look forward to, and, there is no doubt in my mind that if we play to our potential, we can be on the right side of those 2 games,” he said.
India will face Bangladesh in their penultimate group-stage game in Manchester on Thursday before taking on Australia at Lord’s on Sunday.
– Ends
