'We are more hungry to win again': Jemimah Rodrigues on India’s T20 World Cup mission

MUMBAI: After clinching their maiden Women's ODI World Cup last year, the Indian women's team wants to follow that memorable triumph by winning the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup in England this June-July as well, star batter Jemimah Rodrigues said here on Sunday.

“I think it's a bit of motivation now. Since we’ve won one, we want to win two,” Jemimah said when asked about how the team was preparing for the tournament, which is set to begin on June 12 and culminate on July 5.





“The preparation is going great. It didn’t just start after the squad came out. The first series itself was played against Sri Lanka after winning the 2025 World Cup. That day, I also came into the huddle and said this is where we start for the next World Cup,” Rodrigues said, flanked by head coach Amol Muzumdar and left-arm spinner Nilesh Kulkarni at the IISM Degree Distribution Ceremony 2026 on Sunday.

On Saturday, the Indian women's team captain Harmanpreet Kaur had said that her team was hungry and ready for the World Cup. Jemimah revealed that India was “even more hungry to win again and again.”

“I think it’s been great. Usually, after winning a World Cup, teams can get complacent. But this team is different. This team is even more hungry to win it again and again. So I think that’s the plan and that’s the entire motive,” Jemimah said.

Muzumdar acknowledged that his team would badly miss all-rounder Amanjot Kaur, who has been sidelined due to a serious back injury, for which she will require surgery.

“It is very difficult to replace somebody like Amanjot. She’s been consistently doing well for India. We will miss her for sure. But injuries are a part of the game. I guess she’s had a bad one, and she will be out of cricket for at least four to five months. So I hope that she recovers really well and comes back stronger. It’s difficult to replace her, but that’s the way it goes,” the Indian women’s team head coach said.

Muzumdar exuded confidence in his side, especially in light of the Indian women’s team winning a bilateral T20I series in England for the first time ever in July last year.

“We did have a very good T20 series last year. We went on to win against England. That was the first time in history that we beat England in England in a T20 series. So I think the experience is there, the confidence is there. All we need to do is travel well and play well,” he said.

After captaining Nandini Sharma in the Women’s Premier League while leading the Delhi Capitals, Rodrigues said she was happy to see the 24-year-old pacer from Chandigarh break into the Indian team for the first time, and that too in the 2026 T20 World Cup squad.

“Nandini is ready. She was a great player for us throughout the WPL (she picked up 17 wickets in 10 matches, including a hat-trick in WPL-4). To be honest, when we got her, we didn’t know what to expect. We knew she had the talent. But when she came onto the bigger stage of the WPL in front of the world, the way she delivered, not just in one match, not just after the five-wicket haul, but in every single game, she was consistent. I’m really looking forward to having her here in Team India. At the same time, I know this team. I know this team is going to welcome her, prepare her well. There’s a lot of experience in this team, and that experience is going to get the best out of her,” Rodrigues said.

“We’re really looking forward to welcoming her into the squad,” Muzumdar added.

Rodrigues said that the 1-4 series defeat in the five-match T20I series in South Africa earlier this month “taught the Indian women’s team a lot.”

“I think it’s a good thing that what happened gave us a realisation again that sometimes failures teach you a lot more than winning everything. And I know this is going to be very good for our team because our team is taking it in the right spirit, working hard and preparing well. Whatever is ahead, we are going to come back strong in the World Cup,” Rodrigues said.

On Saturday, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia had informed that the Indian women’s team will undergo a week-long camp from May 10 at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.

“It has always been an integral part of this team. We believe in preparing well and preparing for every sort of challenge that is in front of us. I believe that this team is on the right track, and we would be hoping to have a very good camp before we set off for the World Cup,” Muzumdar said.

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