Sunil Gavaskar turned a heartfelt promise into a memorable moment by presenting Jemimah Rodrigues with a specially crafted custom guitar to celebrate her iconic performance at the 2025 Women’s World Cup. The gesture came as a tribute to Rodrigues’ career-defining century against Australia in the World Cup semifinal, an innings that will be remembered as one of the greatest under-pressure knocks in Indian women’s cricket history.
During that high-stakes semifinal, India were chasing a daunting total of 339 on home soil. With the pressure mounting and the tournament on the line, Jemimah rose to the occasion with an extraordinary unbeaten 127, steering India into the World Cup final and ultimately playing a key role in the title-winning campaign. Her fearless stroke play calm temperament and leadership under pressure earned admiration across the cricketing world.
Following that match, legendary former India captain Sunil Gavaskar made a light-hearted yet meaningful promise to the music-loving cricketer. He said that if India went on to lift the World Cup trophy, he would join her for a sing-along session. True to his word, Gavaskar fulfilled that promise on the eve of the Women’s Premier League season and did so with a unique and deeply personal gift.
In a video shared on social media, Gavaskar is seen warmly greeting Rodrigues before handing her a small bag that soon reveals a guitar case. Inside was a custom-made guitar shaped like a cricket bat, symbolising the perfect blend of Rodrigues’ two biggest passions cricket and music. The thoughtful gift left Jemimah visibly delighted and emotional.
The moment became even more special as the two Mumbai natives sat together and shared a musical session. Jemimah strummed the bat-shaped guitar while both sang along creating a rare and heartwarming scene that beautifully captured the spirit of the game beyond competition.
As she moves forward, Jemimah Rodrigues now takes on a major new challenge as captain of the Delhi Capitals in the Women’s Premier League. Stepping into the role previously held by Meg Lanning, one of the sharpest tactical leaders in the sport, Rodrigues carries both responsibility and expectation. Having spent three seasons under Lanning’s leadership and reaching the final each time, Jemimah will aim to turn those near-misses into a title-winning campaign.
Her journey from World Cup match-winner to WPL captain marks the rise of a new-generation leader in Indian cricket. With confidence gained from international success and inspiration drawn from legends like Sunil Gavaskar, Rodrigues will be eager to lead Delhi Capitals strongly, starting with their opening clash against defending champions Mumbai Indians led by Harmanpreet Kaur.
