New Delhi: Indian cricketer Jemimah Rodrigues, who played a match-winning game against Australia in the ICC Women’s World Cup semi-final, has been subjected to online abuse after she thanked Jesus during her post-match interview.
The 25-year-old cricketer, who remained unbeaten with a century to take India into the final, dedicated her performance to her faith, saying, “I just want to thank Jesus. I couldn’t do this on my own. Towards the end, I was quoting a scripture from the Bible, to just stand still, and that God will fight for me.”
However, her remarks quickly triggered online hate abuse from several right-wing social media users.
A right-wing user named Tushar_KN wrote, “Just a few cricket match wins and this country forgets terror attacks. Just a few cricket match wins and this country forgets cricketers doing shady things. I don’t know if it’s the greatness of this country or its foolishness.”
While some accused the cricket sensation of “promoting Christianity through cricket,” others posted old videos of Rodrigues attending church events with her father, Ivan Rodrigues, and made unfounded claims about religious conversion.
One user wrote, “Young Jemimah Rodrigues at a Christian evangelical gathering, led by her father, Ivan Rodrigues, a pastor. As a speaker approaches her on stage, she dramatically collapses and writhes, mimicking spiritual possession or being slain in the Spirit….Rice bag par convert hue log.”
While some called her remarks “dramatic,” others compared her to Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Rizwan, saying Indian players “never invoke Bhagwan or Bhagavad Gita” after matches. A few even used derogatory language and circulated clips from prayer meetings to target her faith.
2024 religious conversion allegations
She faced online hate, abuse, trolls, and also rape threats from social media users over a 2024 controversy involving Jemimah’s father, Ivan Rodrigues.
He was accused of holding “religious conversion” meetings at Mumbai’s Khar Gymkhana, leading to the suspension of Jemimah’s membership. However, Ivan Rodrigues denied the allegations, clarifying that the gatherings were prayer meetings conducted with the club’s approval and not conversion events.
In a statement to news channel India Today, he clarified that, “We had availed the facilities at Khar Gymkhana for prayer meetings on multiple occasions since April 2023, following all procedures and with the knowledge of the office-bearers. These were open gatherings, not conversion meetings as falsely claimed in some media reports.”
Jemimah’s journey through anxiety
Alongside the celebrations, Rodrigues has openly spoken about her struggles with anxiety and self-doubt. During the Women’s World Cup, she revealed she cried almost every day during the tournament, struggling to cope with pressure and expectations.
“There were days when I didn’t think I’d come back. I doubted myself; I cried a lot. But my teammates, my family, they never gave up on me,” she said in an earlier press conference.
Teammates Smriti Mandhana and captain Harmanpreet Kaur have publicly supported her through difficult times.
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