Jemimah Rodrigues and Smriti Mandhana have been finest pals each on and off the sphere. But when the Women’s Premier League (WPL) will get underway this weekend, the 2 pals will probably be in several groups, fulfilling their respective duties.
Jemimah would be the vice-captain of Delhi Capitals, whereas Smriti will probably be main the Royal Challengers Bangalore after they sq. off within the league’s opening recreation on the Brabourne Stadium on Sunday. And, forward of the large recreation, Jemimah desires to place apart the friendship and make sure that Delhi places the very best foot ahead.
“Smriti who?” Jemimah joked when requested about their friendship after which rapidly added with a smile, “actually, we both were hoping that we are not in the same team. We just wanted to play against each other because the rivalry between the best friends is obviously more. We are looking forward to it.”
“Till now, I have not met her on the ground but if I do meet her, I will definitely try and ignore her. I will be loyal to my team. Both the teams are good, so it’s going to be a good match to start our tournament with,” she stated.
In an occasion on Thursday, Delhi Capitals named Jemimah because the vice-captain of the aspect, whereas Meg Lanning was appointed the chief and the Mumbai-based Jemimah is trying ahead to the chance.
“It’s a great opportunity for me. It’s a dream come true moment for every women cricketer and athlete. It’s also great to be the vice-captain of this great bunch and I love taking responsibilities.
“I am also looking forward to working closely with Meg Lanning and JB (coach Jonathan Batty). It’s going to be a lot of learning and I will try to absorb it all,” she stated.
Lanning, too, admitted that she is going to depend on her deputy Jemimah for inputs on native Indian gamers.
“I have always enjoyed this captaincy role for the Mumbai team because I feel that brings the best out of me. Being the vice-captain of this team is a huge opportunity for me at 22 and at the same time, both JB and Lanning are experienced and they know how to handle such situations.
“Whenever needed, I will be there to communicate and also to pass on the messages. They have not seen much of our domestic set-up, so I would be able to help on that front,” Jemimah stated.
The Indian gamers come into the event on the again of a heartbreak in opposition to Australia within the T20 World Cup semifinals and Jemimah believes that although the workforce is but to return to phrases with the defeat, the WPL will take their minds off the frustration.
“It’s not been easy after losing the semifinals. The last few days have been really tough for us. It took us a while and we still haven’t gotten over it. It’s also a blessing in disguise because we now have the WPL and it will help us in getting involved in it and get busy. It will help us take our minds off the World Cup, but again those thoughts will keep haunting us,” she stated.
The Delhi Capitals may even be counting on Shafali Verma, who has didn’t convert begins into large totals these days. Jemimah, being a senior cricketer, backed Shafali.
“Shifu is mature enough. She has played enough cricket and so she knows the situations. But then yes, if there’s anything, she will obviously come and ask – be it whoever me, Smriti or Harman and we are okay with helping her. But she needs to give her some time because it happens in cricket. It’s not that she is not batting well, it’s just a matter of time that she converts that into big scores,” she stated.
Source web site: sportstar.thehindu.com
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