How one athlete changed the story for Indian cricket

"India's new heroine is a come-back-kid who led her cricket team to world victory. She's also a target for Hindu extremists because she wears her Christianity on her sleeve SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST: In India, cricket is religion, and Indians are now celebrating a comeback kid who paved the way for the country's women's team to reach world victory, but her own path came at a steep cost."

"DIAA HADID, BYLINE: YouTube is replete with fan videos of 25-year-old Jemimah Rodrigues singing, making others sing, like on a bus with her teammates. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Singing in non-English language). HADID: Suprita Das is a sportswriter. She says Jemimah Rodrigues... SUPRITA DAS: She's the heartbeat of the team."

"HADID: The Indian women's cricket team - Rodrigues joined when she was just 17. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER #1: And then the way she jumps - oh, brilliant. HADID: But Rodrigues was also an inconsistent player. She was dropped from the team ahead of the 2022 Women's World Cup, one of cricket's biggest international tournaments. Then in October last year, she and her family were publicly humiliated. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: India's women cricketer Jemimah Rodrigues finds herself in an unfortunate controversy. HADID: That's India Today, reporting on how Rodrigues and her family were kicked out of an elite Mumbai sports club after..."

Jemimah Rodrigues emerged as a central figure in India's women's cricket comeback, celebrated by fans and teammates. She joined the national team at 17 and became known for energetic play and team camaraderie captured in fan videos. Rodrigues struggled with inconsistency and was dropped before the 2022 Women's World Cup, then later faced public humiliation when her family was expelled from an elite Mumbai sports club. Rodrigues has been targeted by Hindu extremists because she openly practices Christianity and has received threatening and abusive messages, including references to sexual violence, despite her role in the team's success.

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