Indian star Jemimah Rodrigues was named the fielder of the match in the team’s opening clash against New Zealand in the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup on Friday, October 4. Tasked with covering the deep field, she demonstrated once again why she is regarded as one of the squad’s top fielders.
The Women in Blue initially struggled with their fielding at the Dubai International Stadium, with New Zealand taking advantage of a misfield by Renuka Singh Thakur that resulted in a boundary and a dropped catch by Richa Ghosh that let Suzie Bates off the hook.
However, as the innings progressed, their fielding improved. Smriti Mandhana and Shreyanka Patil made crucial catches in the deep after the powerplay, while Jemimah showcased her skills with several important stops in the deep.
Fielding coach Munish Bali praised the team’s recovery after their early misfields. He acknowledged the contributions of Smriti Mandhana and Shreyanka Patil and requested skipper Harmanpreet Kaur to announce the medal recipient.
Here’s a look at Jemimah Rodrigues with her award:
https://x.com/sportskeeda/status/1842433828830519374?s=46
Jemimah Rodrigues was the second-highest run scorer for India during their chase, making 13 runs off 11 balls.
Team India lost to New Zealand by 58 runs in the Group A match
Placed in a challenging group, the Women in Blue required a solid start to kick off their World Cup campaign. Unfortunately, things went downhill from the beginning as they were outperformed by New Zealand. India were slight favorites against a Sophie Devine-led team that entered the World Cup on a 10-match losing streak.
However, India struggled to match the opponent’s impressive intent and was significantly impacted by it. The demoralizing loss has also resulted in India’s net run rate dropping to -2.900 with four matches left. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led team will next take on Pakistan on Sunday, October 6.
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