The Balcony Where It All Began
April 2011. After India won the World Cup, Mumbai went wild. People poured out onto the streets, dancing, shouting, waving flags, honking cars till midnight. It felt like the whole city was celebrating the same heartbeat. The whole city was breathing celebration. Every eye turned to one house, Sachin Tendulkar’s.
An 11-year-old girl, standing on a narrow balcony nearby, watched the crowd erupt as Sachin stepped out of his car. For her, that was more than just a moment. It was the start of a dream.
That girl was Jemimah Rodrigues. Fourteen years later, she wasn’t watching a victory from a balcony. She was standing in the middle of the storm, bat in hand, writing one of her own.
Long Road Back
Jemimah’s rise was never smooth. She had talent, yes, but sport doesn’t care for talent alone. It tests your patience. It breaks your confidence before it builds your character.
She made her ODI debut in 2018, batting at number three against Australia. But over the next few years, she bounced around the order, never fully securing her place. The numbers were modest, 404 runs in 22 innings at an average below 20.
Then came 2022. The World Cup without her name on the team sheet. For someone who had dreamt in blue since childhood, that felt like the world had stopped. She admitted later she cried into her pillow every night. That was the first time cricket had truly hurt her.
But heartbreak is a strange teacher. It taught her grit. It pushed her to rebuild herself quietly, in practice nets, in gyms, in silence.
When Fire Returned
By 2025, she was a different Jemimah. Her numbers turned into a statement, 1321 runs in her last 33 ODIs, averaging 47 with a strike rate over 100. All three of her centuries came this year.
Her batting was no longer about survival. It was about control. She reclaimed the number three position, the one she had started with years ago. Against New Zealand, she scored a classy unbeaten 76 off 55 balls to keep India alive in the tournament.
Then, in the semifinals, she faced the most dominant team on the planet, Australia, who is always the standard for teams to measure themselves by.
The Night That Turned Blue to Gold
Australia, the most dominant side in women’s cricket. The team that had made winning look like routine, the same way Japan’s Yui Susaki did in wrestling before Vinesh Phogat stunned her in the 2024 Olympics. Susaki had ruled her weight division for years, unbeaten, untouchable, winning all her Olympic matches. And yet, that night, Vinesh broke the myth of invincibility.
This win felt like that. India beating Australia in a World Cup semifinal wasn’t just a match result. It was the sporting equivalent of shaking the mountain and watching it crack.
Australia posted a huge total, one that would have buried most teams under pressure. But Jemimah walked in early, calm and fearless. There was no rush, no panic. Every single stroke she played carried intent, not aggression.
She constructed the run chase piece by piece, establishing a strong foundation to the innings with an incredible sense of control. And when she finally made it past 100 runs, she did not make a big show about celebrating it. Just a small smile, a fist bump with Richa Ghosh, and a silent promise to finish the job.
When India crossed the line, she fell to her knees, overwhelmed. The roar of DY Patil Stadium could be heard miles away. That was not just a semifinal win. It was a sporting revolution.
For years, Australia had been the mountain. On this night, Jemimah made it move.
Choice of a Lifetime
Before all this, she was also a hockey player, fast, skilled, state-level good. But life made her choose.
She liked both. However, after a long silence and a couple of tears, she said “yes” to cricket. She didn’t know how big that decision would be. She just followed her gut.
That single decision changed the course of her life. It was the first of many brave calls she would go on to make.
Sachin’s Connection to This Story
When Sachin Tendulkar was just ten years old he watched India win its first Cricket World Cup in 1983. That moment was destined to shape the path of his entire life. Jemimah was eleven when she saw him lift the trophy in 2011, and that moment shaped hers.
Both trained at MIG Club in Mumbai. Both played for Yorkshire. Both carried India’s hopes with a quiet kind of fire.
In her interview with Vishal Dikshit for The Cricket Monthly, Jemimah laughed and said, “I didn’t even know this story about Sachin. Guess our stories aren’t that different after all.”
Two kids. Two dreams born from World Cup nights. One legacy passed down, not through words, but through will.
Beyond the Numbers
Scorebook will read that Jemimah Rodrigues hit 127 runs not out. But it won’t say how many times she had to pull herself out of doubt. It won’t tell you how she learned to silence the noise around her.
This wasn’t just about numbers. It was about redemption. About belief. About holding your nerve when everything screams to let go.
At the presentation, her words were simple, “It wasn’t about proving a point. I just wanted to do something that helps my team win.”
Sometimes the quiet ones carry the loudest hearts.
Full Circle
Back in Bandra, the same balcony still looks out over the same road, the one where fans once waited for Sachin.
Fourteen years ago, Jemimah watched him bring the trophy home.
Last night, she gave India a reason to believe it can happen again.
And somewhere out there, maybe another little girl leaned on her balcony railing, eyes wide, whispering to herself, “one day, I’ll do that too.”
In her same interview with Vishal Dikshit, Jemimah had said, “I still feel like I’m in the 80 to 85 phase now. There’s still a lot more I can do better and it will come, it will come soon. My coach keeps telling me every player has their peak. That peak comes between 25 to 30, when you’ve matured, played enough cricket, and know your game.”
Last night at DY Patil Stadium, the world saw a glimpse of what her 100 percent could look like. And if this was only 80 percent of Jemimah Rodrigues, the future is going to be terrifyingly beautiful.