Jemimah Rodrigues opens up on pressure before IND vs PAK WT20 World Cup 2026 opener; ‘Even my building watchman says…’

India middle-order batter Jemimah Rodrigues has revealed that the pressure of taking on Pakistan in a cricket match is unique in its own ways, and even revealed what Harmanpreet Kaur had told the team before Jemimah played her first match against Pakistan.

India will renew their rivalry against Pakistan in the Women's T20 World Cup 2026 tournament, when the two teams lock horns in a Group A match in Birmingham on Sunday.

The Women in Blue have never won the Women's T20 World Cup title and have only reached the final once, back in 2020, when they lost Australia.

"I remember when I played my first India-Pakistan game. In the dressing room, Harman di actually spoke to us, saying, 'Let's not deny it. There is pressure from the outside because we know the history of India versus Pakistan.

"We know what the fans expect," Jemimah Rodrigues said on JioHotstar.

She even revealed an advice that her building's watchman gave her. "Even my building watchman says, 'Lose to anyone, but not against Pakistan.' That is the kind of pressure because people love cricket. They love this rivalry.”

"Lifting that trophy! This morning, we visualised it. We do that as a team. It's part of our usual process, where we sit together and visualise because we believe that if you see something long enough, you start moving in that direction," she said.

"That is the theme of our team. We did it during the 2025 World Cup. Amol sir has made it a point for us to do it here as well, and we'll continue doing that," she explained.

Jemimah played a crucial role in India’s ODI World Cup title triumph in 2025. She scored just 292 runs from eight matches in the tournament, but her unbeaten 127 against Australia in the semi-finals is what gave India hope that they could lift the World Cup trophy.

The 25-year-old gave a glimpse of the Indian team's preparations and spoke on the importance of training under pressure.

"Everyone says you have to thrive under pressure, but how do you do that? You do it by repeatedly putting yourself under pressure in practice and making those situations as challenging as possible, so that when you go into a match, you feel prepared.

"The preparation has been excellent. We've had great camps and this team is looking really confident. We didn't have a great series against South Africa, but sometimes a defeat teaches you a lot more than winning. We've made notes of those lessons, worked on them, and now we can't wait to get out there and play some good cricket," she elaborated.

After the match against Pakistan, India will take on Netherlands (17 June), South Africa (21 June), Bangladesh (25 June) and Australia (28 June) in their remaining group stage matches.