Mumbai girl slams double in one-dayer
MUMBAI:On Sunday, Bandra-girl Jemimah Rodrigues became the youngest and only the second Indian woman cricketer after Smriti Mandhana to hit a double century in U-19 One-day competition. No one in Mumbai women’s cricket fraternity is surprised by the feat. The 17-year-old Jemimah seems to be one of those earmarked for greatness in their field. The double century could have come in the previous match itself, but at the score of 178 (142 balls) she went for a big shot and threw the chance away, said Jayesh Dadarkar, coach of the Mumbai U-19 girls team.
Representing Mumbai in a 50-over domestic match against Saurashtra at Aurangabad, Jemimah slammed a 163-ball unbeaten 202 (24 fours) helping her team to an imposing 347/2.
The 17-year-old Rizvi College student is way ahead of the competition in her age group. She is not just the captain of the U-19 team; she captains the Mumbai’s U-23 side, West Zone Under-19 and U-23 teams, played for India U-19 and has just returned from attending the senior India camp held in Bangalore.
Usually, such big innings in limited overs format are result of big hitting, but those who have seen Jemimah bat vouch for how correct her technique is. “She stuck to playing in the V,” said coach Dadarkar. “Cover drive is my favourite shot. I have spent hours and hours for 3-4 years perfecting it with my dad, who is my coach also. It is my main shot,” Jemimah told Hindustan Times.