India head coach Amol Muzumdar has conceded that benching the experienced Jemimah Rodrigues for the ODI World Cup clash against England on Sunday was “one of the toughest decisions” the team has had to make, and one dictated squarely by combination and conditions.
“To be fair, Jemi has been a very important player, an integral part of this side we have built,” Muzumdar said. “Sometimes you just have to take those tough calls. That game, particularly against England, required the sixth bowling option, given the ground of Indore and the high-scoring conditions over there, we thought six bowling options would be a better call on that particular day and for that particular match.”
Rodrigues, who has been able to score just 65 runs from four innings this tournament, including two ducks, made way for seamer Renuka Singh.
“It was a tough call, there is no doubt about it,” Muzumdar said. “One of the toughest decisions, but sometimes tough calls do need to be taken. She took it really nicely and very sportingly.”
Ahead of India’s important clash against New Zealand, Rodrigues had an extended net session, fine tuning her drives, though Muzumdar said the decision to bring her back into the XI will be taken only on match day.
India have now suffered three consecutive blips on the radar, losing to South Africa, Australia, and England, all after getting themselves into favourable positions. Muzumdar conceded that the pressure of playing a home World Cup is getting to his disciples, but backed the squad, including young pacer Kranti Gaud, who’s proven expensive in her second spell in all three games, to bounce back.
“I think a home World Cup, of course, there has to be some kind of pressure. But this side, this particular side is well-equipped to handle that. We’ve built a side around it and I think all the players are well-equipped to handle pressure.
