Women's Asia Cup 2022: "For the first six weeks, I couldn't even touch the bat"- Jemimah Rodrigues opens up on her recovery

Team India's star batter Jemimah Rodrigues has been in sensational form in the ongoing Women's Asia Cup and is one of the front-runners to win the Player of the Tournament. However, things were not so smooth sailing for the youngster a few weeks ago.

Jemimah Rodrigues sustained a hand injury during the Women's Hundred 2022, which ruled her out of India's tour of England. Her absence resulted in India losing the T20I series 1-2. Rodrigues spoke about how difficult it was for her to stay away from the game due to injury.

Speaking to Star Sports ahead of the Women's Asia Cup final, here's what Jemimah Rodrigues had to say about her rehabilitation at the NCA:

"It was my first major injury due to which I had to miss out on a series, the England series. It was not easy as I was in good touch during the Commonwealth (Games) and I wanted to play so badly. I had to go to the NCA for my rehab and for the first six weeks, I couldn't even touch the bat. For a Jemi, that was very difficult."

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Jemimah Rodrigues on her change in mindset

Rodrigues accepted that as she has gained experience playing international cricket, she has gradually begun to focus more on her process and pre-match preparation, rather than being desperate about performing.

The 22-year-old also shed light on how hard she is working on her fitness and how that has helped her contribute better to the team. On this, the youngster stated:

"I worked really hard on my fitness. The second aspect that has stood out for me is my preparation. Initially I was just like, "I need to perform. I need to score runs." But the focus has now changed from my performance to my preparation."

It will be interesting to see if Rodrigues can contribute to India's seventh Asia Cup title, when they face-off against Sri Lanka in the final on Saturday.