Indian cricketer Jemimah Rodrigues. File
| Photo Credit: Emmanual Yogini

File picture of Jemimah Rodrigues in action
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

It was 25 years ago that Mark Butcher scored a monumental 173 not out in England’s successful chase against Australia in the Headingley Test. He scored seven other Test hundreds, some of them against the most fearsome attacks. He is now a popular commentator and sharp analyst of the game. Excerpts from Butcher’s exclusive interview with The Hindu at Lord’s:

Your comparison of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi with Garry Sobers earlier this year got a lot of attention. It was fascinating, how you proved, through the help of visuals, the similarities in the bat swing, hand speed…

I watched him make that 175 [off 80 balls] in the Under-19 World Cup final [against England at Harare]. I was struck by that incredible, long, high backlift, the huge follow-through, the complete circle almost where the bat finishes around, tapping him on the spine. You know, Sobers used to hit a lot of shots with his feet together. He would play full balls almost off the back foot. And Sooryavanshi can hit them like that too.

Even if his career ends up not reaching the expectations that other people have, which I think is very unlikely, he has still in the IPL done something that all of the greatest players up until now have never, ever done: none of them have managed to score at a strike-rate of 230, hit that many sixes, be that consistent in the entirety of the IPL. It is still one of the most remarkable things I have ever seen.

Today’s youngsters are exposed to T20 from the beginning, whereas when I was very young, it was Test matches. They grow up thinking about batting very much in a hyper aggressive mode. These younger guys can do things at their age that we wouldn’t have dreamt of at ours.

ALSO READ | Garry Sobers: cricket’s greatest — a legacy beyond numbers

Yes, even Sachin Tendulkar didn’t hit as many sixes, for all his genius. Sooryavanshi is a product of the T20 era of cricket.

Correct. So he will have to learn the game the other way around. He will have to learn how to bat time, to defend. In our generation, it was the opposite. We would have to spend a lot of time learning how to hit the ball.

How do you recall your masterpiece — 173 not out in 2001?

My main memory is about that summer, really. I wasn’t expecting to play Test cricket again. I got an opportunity and I played 42 Tests in a row. I had completely changed my game.

Your father helped, didn’t he?

That is right. The biggest thing I remember is the relationship I had with my dad in the winter of 2001. I called him and said, ‘Dad, I am hating playing cricket.’ Something that I had always loved. Now I was hating it. And I said to him — ‘Treat me as though I have never played the game before.’ So we went right back to the beginning. He really taught me how to hold the bat, how to stand, the whole thing. We changed my grip. We changed my stance. We changed my backlift. Everything. We went back to zero. Like I was five years old. And we worked like that for about three months. And then I luckily got back into the team. I had made a few runs playing for Surrey. A few injuries in the England camp before the Ashes started, and I got in.

How much does that knock, which came against Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie, mean to you?

Ah, it was huge. You wouldn’t be talking to me if it hadn’t been for that. And I wouldn’t be working in TV either. So that innings changed everything. It was the greatest day.

And how was the coach’s reaction?

I know my dad was in tears when [BBC] Test Match Special called him up.

The players you like to watch these days?

I actually love watching K.L. Rahul. I think he is a sensational player. Really classy. Harry Brook is fabulous to watch when he is in. Joe Root, too. And Travis Head — you can’t take your eyes off the screen when he is batting.

You have played against some of the greatest bowlers in history. Who were the most challenging among them?

Blimey! Curtly Ambrose. Him and Courtney Walsh. And then you had, obviously, Shane Warne. Glenn McGrath. Murali [Muttiah Muralitharan].

Among the Indians?

Harbhajan [Singh] and [Anil] Kumble, on those tracks.

And the batters you admired?

[Brian] Lara was sort of the king around about those times. Fellow left-hander, so I greatly admired him. Then the guys like [Ricky] Ponting, Sachin [Tendulkar], obviously. I remember applauding Ricky from second slip at the WACA, much to the annoyance of Nasser Hussain, who was standing next to me at slip. He glared at me. I was just standing there going, ‘Oh man, that’s good’. There were a lot of great players around, like the South Africans, Jacques Kallis and Graeme Smith.

An aesthete’s eye: A batting stylist in his time, Butcher appreciates elegant strokeplay. Brian Lara, K.L. Rahul and Smriti Mandhana are some of his favourites.
| Photo Credit:
Getty Images

Is there cause for concern about the future of Test cricket?

Yeah, of course, there is. What you would like is to have eight to ten teams who are competing on a level playing field. If only England, Australia and India are playing each other, the game is starting to eat itself, you know.

Eventually, one of the great things about all of the series that go around is that you are anticipating and you are excited about the idea about playing this team at this venue. But if it is the same three teams the whole time, it is not that exciting.

What has happened in the modern era is that the gap between the countries that have plenty of finances and the rest has got wider. The competition has perhaps thinned out a little bit in recent times. And that is a huge shame, that finances have meant that a lot of countries, the West Indies, being the most obvious example simply because of their dominance [in the past], have suffered.

South Africa are kind of hanging in there. They are still producing a lot of players and they still manage just about to keep enough of their most talented players to play Tests. But in places like Sri Lanka and the West Indies, they find it very difficult to keep their best players who disappear off to earn more money playing T20. And that is a problem for the world game.

The First Class game and the structures that produce Test Match cricketers are strong in some places and not very strong at all in others.

Your thoughts on Bazball?

I have been critical of it at times. In the game of cricket, the Test match is the game. And they tried to do something that was going to take the game to a different place. But Test match cricket kind of fought against it a little bit. Because when it came down to it, in the big games against the likes of India and Australia, it didn’t work. And so, Test match cricket is kind of greater than any idea that people might have around how you play it.

And Test cricket is the greatest form of sport.

It is. The sport itself dictates to you what is necessary. And if you push too hard, the game will bite you back. And that is what happened. There is as much pleasure to be taken from a really hard-fought draw sometimes as there is from smashing it all over the park.

ALSO READ | Cricket World Cup – Will expansion lead to elevation?

The women got to play a Test at Lord’s, finally.

This has come about because the world has decided, well, you know, this is a great game of cricket, right? Why would we want to stop 50% of the world’s population from enjoying and playing the sport that we think is a great sport? And so that opportunity is now there and what you are seeing is a product of that.

Players in the women’s game that you enjoy watching?

I like Smriti Mandhana’s batting. She is just an incredibly graceful player. So easy on the eye. Very, very lovely to watch. She plays pace and spin equally well. She reminds me of David Gower, in fact. Harmanpreet Kaur is very good to watch, too. And Jemimah Rodrigues is a fine technician.

Besides cricket, music is your other passion. And you had the opportunity of performing with Sarah Brightman, one of the greatest voices of our time.

It was good fun, singing some of Sarah’s favourite songs on live television. It was kind of nerve-racking, but it was good.

Mark Butcher.
| Photo Credit: P.K. Ajith Kumar

It was a night when India turned the unimaginable into reality. Chasing 339 against the all-conquering Australia in the Women’s ODI World Cup semifinal at DY Patil Stadium, India pulled off the biggest successful chase in the format’s history. And at the heart of it all stood Jemimah Rodrigues – calm, composed and courageous – her unbeaten hundred guiding India into Sunday’s (November 2, 2025) final against South Africa.

Also Read | Women’s Cricket World Cup, IND vs AUS: Players wear black armbands in tribute to Austin

Moments after her match-winning knock, Jemimah opened up about her sudden batting promotion, the mental and emotional battles she has fought over the past month, and the faith that kept her steady through it all.

With a rejigged combination, Jemimah was slated to bat at No. 5, behind captain Harmanpreet Kaur. But the team management changed the plans, and by the time Jemimah stepped out of a shower in the dressing room, all she got before walking out to join Smriti Mandhana in the middle was five minutes.

“So, I just gave myself some time,” she said with a smile. “I was taking a shower, I took my ice bath first, and then I asked, ‘Is it the same batting order?’ They said yes. Then they sent a message again saying, ‘You are going to go now.’ I said okay, but I was in the shower at that time. I just freshened up, ate something because I hadn’t eaten, and once I walked in there, I thought — how would I play for a Mumbai team when I leave Mumbai? What would I do there?”

The promotion wasn’t just a tactical change — it was a test of adaptability. But Jemimah’s preparation and clarity of thought helped her adjust instantly. “I knew I needed to be there, build a partnership with Smriti or Harman or whoever comes in. I knew how important this match was, and I wanted to be there to finish it off. So I just kept telling myself — stand here, just stand here, amazing things can happen. Give God a chance, just stand here, you never know what can happen at the end of the match.”

As the innings unfolded, she refused to get carried away by milestones. “When I reached my 50, when I reached my 100, I didn’t celebrate. I looked at our hotel right here (in the stadium premises) and thought — tomorrow morning, what would make me happier? A 50? A 100? No. It would be India winning. I wanted to wake up with that feeling, sleep with that smile — that we are in the final. That kept me motivated.”

Even before India’s innings began, Jemimah sensed that the target was within reach, with India pulling things back in the last 10 overs of Australia’s essay.

“I felt with the way Australia started, they were 30 runs short,” she said. “With the start they got, I knew they could have pushed on, but they didn’t. And DY Patil is such a pitch — any score is chasable. I just knew that my job was to be there. Runs will come if I am there.”

Her partnership with captain Harmanpreet Kaur became the spine of India’s chase. Together, they added 167 runs, blending power and precision, audacity and restraint.

“I have been part of chases against Australia before,” Jemimah recalled. “Three times we were going well — we brought it to run-a-ball situations and still lost from there. Those moments taught me a lot. I just wanted to be there this time to finish it off.”

The learnings, she said, came full circle. “The previous day, we had a group discussion — what can we do better in this World Cup? I said, ‘I want to be there till the end and finish the game.’ Whether we are batting first or chasing, if I’m there, I know I can create partnerships and find gaps. And today, that just felt like a setup from God. Everything that happened in the last month — it felt like preparation for this moment.”

Just when it looked like both set batters would take India home, Harmanpreet fell for 80, caught at deep square leg. And India has had famous – rather infamous – collapses in key matches following

Harmanpreet’s dismissal. “I remember telling Harry di (Harmanpreet) that we both have to finish it,” Jemimah said. “We can’t leave it for the end, just because we are set. We knew we could take it through.”

Her partner’s dismissal, however, triggered a shift in Jemimah’s mindset. “When Harry di got out, I think it was a blessing in disguise. I was losing focus because of tiredness, and when she got out, it added more responsibility — that I need to be here, that she is out, so I’ll score for her. That again put me in the right zone. From there, I started playing sensibly again.” She revealed how exhaustion nearly clouded her judgment during the latter part of the chase. “I lost a lot of energy and felt really tired. It was a tricky phase — should I go now or take it deep? That was a big learning — to stay there. Towards the end, I was praying, talking to myself, and talking to God. Because I feel when I can’t carry myself, He carries me.”

As composed as she looked on the field, Jemimah admitted that the past month had tested her mentally more than any innings ever could. “I’ll be very vulnerable here because I know someone watching might be going through the same thing,” she said. “I was going through a lot of anxiety at the start of the tournament. Before a few games, I used to call my mom and just cry — cry the entire time. Because when you go through anxiety, you feel numb. You don’t know what to do.”

Her voice wavered as she spoke about the support system that carried her through. “My mom, my dad — they supported me so much. There was Arundhati (Reddy) — I think almost every day I cried in front of her. I used to joke, ‘Don’t come in front of me, I’ll start crying!’ But she checked on me every single day. Smriti was there too — she just stood with me in the nets, didn’t say much, but her presence meant a lot. Radha (Yadav) has always taken care of me. I’m so blessed to have friends I can call family. It’s okay to ask for help.”

She also spoke about how faith kept her grounded through those moments of doubt. “I’m grateful to Jesus, because His presence and reading the Bible encouraged me in tough times. The Bible says, ‘Weeping endures for a night, but joy comes in the morning.’ Today joy came — but I’m still weeping,” she said, with tears rolling down her cheeks.

This wasn’t the first time Jemimah had fought back from adversity. Being dropped from India’s squad during the previous World Cup had shaken her confidence, and even this tournament started poorly for her.

“When I came into this World Cup, having been dropped from the last one, I didn’t want to prove a point,” she said. “I just wanted to make sure India wins. Because it’s easy to get into that mindset of proving yourself — and that mindset never helps me.”

She admitted that her World Cup campaign had begun with struggles. “I didn’t start well — first match, out on zero. Next match, got a good start but couldn’t convert. Then another zero. Then a 30. Then dropped. Every time I thought, okay, now it’s going to happen, things just got worse. So this knock is very special because of everything I went through — and to do it in front of my family, my team, my people in Navi Mumbai. It feels like my best innings so far. I’m saving one more for the final.”

For Jemimah, India’s semifinal success wasn’t about who the opponent was, but about the approach. “Whichever team had come in the semifinals, our reply would have been the same,” she said firmly. “We don’t want to play the team — we want to play the moment and win that moment. We play the match to win it for India, with the same passion and aggression.”

By the end of the night, Jemimah was still processing what she had done. The crowd at DY Patil had witnessed history, but for her, it was more than numbers — it was healing, hope, and homecoming.

“I haven’t let it sink in yet,” she admitted softly. “It just feels like everything was set up for this. The last month wasn’t easy, but it prepared me for this. I’m grateful to the people who believed in me when I couldn’t believe in myself. I couldn’t have done this alone.”

As India marched into another World Cup final, Jemimah Rodrigues’ words carried the emotion of someone who had fought, fallen, and risen again — and in doing so, became the heartbeat of India’s greatest chase.

Jemimah Rodrigues gets emotional after winning the ICC Women’s World Cup semifinal against Australia at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on October 30, 2025
| Photo Credit: Emmanual Yogini

India’s women cricket player Smriti Mandhana in action. File.
| Photo Credit: VIJAY SONEJI

India completed a whitewash of Ireland with a massive 304-run win in the third and final women’s ODI in Rajkot on Wednesday (January 15, 2025).

Openers Smriti Mandhana and Pratika Rawal scored a century each to power India to their highest-ever total of 435.

Mandhana (135) and Rawal (154) shared a whopping 233-run stand to give a solid start to India after opting to bat.

The big-hitting Richa Ghosh then scored a quickfire 59 to further inflate India’s total as the Irish bowlers struggled to find answers.

In response, Ireland were bundled out for 131 in 31.4 overs.

Medium pacer Orla Prendergast (2/71) was the most susccesfull bowler for the visitors with two wickets.

India skipper Smriti Mandhana won the toss and elected to bat against Ireland in the third and final women’s ODI.

Brief Score: India 435 for 5 in 50 overs (Pratika Rawal 154, Smriti Mandhana 135; Orla Prendergast 2/71)

Teams:

India Women: Smriti Mandhana (c), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Tejal Hasabnis, Deepti Sharma, Sayali Satghare, Minnu Mani, Tanuja Kanwar and Titas Sadhu.

Ireland Women: Sarah Forbes, Gaby Lewis (c), Coulter Reilly (wk), Orla Prendergast, Laura Delany, Leah Paul, Arlene Kelly, Ava Canning, Georgina Dempsey, Freya Sargent and Alana Dalzell.

 Thanks to Jemimah Rodrigues, who displayed patience and composure before accelerating in the final stages of the innings, India smashed their highest-ever ODI total of 370/5 in the last game. File.
| Photo Credit: VIJAY SONEJI

A dominant India will fancy their chances of completing a clean sweep of the women’s ODI series against Ireland in the third and final match here on Wednesday, having recorded two convincing wins in the preceding games.

With another power-packed batting performance, the Indian team will be aiming to continue their impressive run and finish on a high note.

Pratika Rawal, after scoring her third half-century in just four innings, will be eager to translate her start into a maiden hundred.

Her blistering opening partnerships with skipper Smriti Mandhana have been the biggest takeaway of the series.

The duo added 156 runs for the first wicket in their previous outing, marking their third century-plus stand in five innings.

Mandhana’s consistency at the top continues to be a major highlight for India as the flamboyant left-hander has carried on her form across formats from the West Indies series.

Harleen Deol, who initially struggled for momentum, found her rhythm later in the innings, scoring an important 89.

Thanks to Jemimah Rodrigues, who displayed patience and composure before accelerating in the final stages of the innings, India smashed their highest-ever ODI total of 370/5 in the last game.

Promoted to No. 4 in Harmanpreet Kaur’s absence, Rodrigues showed maturity after getting a reprieve on 34, and it took her just 28 balls to reach her second fifty.

“It was an added responsibility… Initially I showed a lot of patience, which was again a big positive for me because it was important for me to spend time there to get those runs,” Rodrigues said.

“And you know, I was getting the runs. But I was not spending enough time to make it bigger. So I was happy I could do that today.” Seasoned batter Tejal Hasanbis also made a fine comeback with an unbeaten fifty in the opening ODI.

In the absence of big hitters like Shafali Verma and Kaur, who has been rested, the series also highlighted the performance of the emerging talents with Pratika making the most of it.

India’s bowling though has raised some concerns, as the team has struggled to take wickets consistently in home conditions and allowed Ireland to post 254/7 in pursuit of 371.

While India are missing Renuka Singh, the injury to Pooja Vastrakar has compounded their misery.

Deepti Sharma, who played in her 100th ODI in the last match, has been the standout bowler with four wickets at 19.50, while the likes of Priya Mishra, Sayali Satghare, Titas Sadhu have not been able to impress.

The Irish batting has largely revolved around the trio of skipper Gaby Lewis, Christina Coulter-Reilly, and Leah Paul, each of whom has posted a half-century.

However, the Irish fielding has been a cause for concern with the team conceding unnecessary runs.

Teams (from): India: Smriti Mandhana (C), Deepti Sharma (VC), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Jemimah Rodrigues, Uma Chetry (wk), Richa Ghosh (wk), Tejal Hasabnis, Raghvi Bist, Minnu Mani, Priya Mishra, Tanuja Kanwer, Titas Sadhu, Saima Thakor, Sayali Satghare.

Ireland: Gaby Lewis (C), Ava Canning, Christina Coulter Reilly, Alana Dalzell, Laura Delany, Georgina Dempsey, Sarah Forbes, Arlene Kelly, Joanna Loughran, Aimee Maguire, Leah Paul, Orla Prendergast, Una Raymond-Hoey, Freya Sargent, Rebecca Stokell.

Match starts: 11 am.

India Women extended their unbeaten run against the West Indies to nine consecutive T20I victories with a dominating 49-run win in the series opener on Sunday. After Jemimah Rodrigues (73) and Smriti Mandhana (54) powered India to their highest-ever total of 195 for four against the Caribbean side and their third highest overall in the format, the West Indies responded with 146 for seven. At the top, young Qiana Joseph dazzled with a 33-ball 49, while veteran Deandra Dottin (52) recorded her first fifty since making a comeback to T20Is earlier this year, but their efforts were not enough.

West Indies’ hopes were dealt a body blow in the second over when substitute fielder Minnu Mani produced a superb athletic catch to see the back of West Indies’ skipper Hayley Matthews (1) off Titas Sadhu (3/37).

Joseph cracked five fours and three sixes to keep the scoreboard ticking but West Indies could not produce big partnerships in the middle.

Joseph and Shemaine Campbelle (13) put on a laborious 34-run stand for the second wicket off 31 balls, while the former’s association with Dottin did not last beyond 18-ball 44 for the third wicket.

Joseph took a liking for Saima Thakor, hitting the Indian bowler for four boundaries in the eighth over but the asking rate only kept increasing. After Joseph missed her fifty by one run — dismissed by Sadhu — Dottin took charge of getting the big runs.

Dottin hit four fours and three sixes in her 28-ball 52 but even as she got a couple of lifelines with Indian fielders spilling regulation catches, the target was beyond the visitors.

Dottin too became a victim of Sadhu, who capitalized on the pressure created by the spin duo of Deepti Sharma (2/21) and Radha Yadav (2/21).

Earlier, Rodrigues clobbered nine fours and two sixes to make a superb 73 off 35 balls, producing one of her finest knocks in the shortest format at No 3.

Coming off a fine 105 in her last outing — the final ODI of the Australia tour — Mandhana continued with her rich streak of form to notch up her 28th fifty in the format and sixth of the year.

Mandhana’s 54 also took her runs tally past 600 runs in the year while she moved to the fourth spot in the list of highest run-scorers in women’s T20Is in 2024.

Mandhana’s knock included seven fours and two sixes as she, along with the others in her camp, enjoyed returning to favourable and familiar conditions at home as India bettered their highest-ever total against West Indies. Their previous best was 185/4 in November 2019 at Gros Islet.

It was Rodrigues who appeared to have made the most of it, targeting her favourite scoring area on the leg side to pierce gaps with ease and even send the ball flying over the ropes at deep square leg on one occasion to bring up her 12th fifty.

Mandhana and Rodrigues put on 81 for the second wicket off 44 balls before the former was dismissed by Karishma Ramharack, who was the pick among the Caribbean bowlers returning figures of 4-0-18-2.

Richa Ghosh made a quick 14-ball 20 with two fours and a six, and her knock ended with the veteran Deandra Dottin taking a superb catch at deep mid-wicket off Mandy Mangru in the 17th over.

India’s opening pair of Uma Chetry (24) and Mandhana gave their side the early impetus, putting on 50 runs on board inside seven overs.

Jemimah Rodrigues with father Ivan© Twitter