[Picture] Jemimah Rodrigues hugs her parents after India’s win vs Australia in Women’s World Cup 2025 semi-final

Jemimah Rodrigues single-handedly brought an end to Australia’s eight-year dominance in the ICC Women’s World Cup with a sensational match-winning innings in the semifinal at the DY Patil Stadium on Thursday night. The Mumbai cricketer’s composed yet aggressive century guided India to a record chase, sending the seven-time champions crashing out of the tournament. With this amazing achievement, Rodrigues became the second Indian to score a century in a Women's ODI World Cup semifinal.

After the match, a touching photo surfaced of Jemimah hugging her parents, summarizing the emotion behind India's famous win. While fans and the greats of the game praised the young cricketer for her audaciousness and match-winning mentality, India's victory was especially sweet against the dominant defending champions who had been ruling the tournament for nearly a decade.

During the post-match presentation, Jemimah revealed that she found out about her batting position just minutes before walking in. She said, “Did not know I was batting at three. Was taking a shower, just told them to let me know. Five minutes before entering in, I was told I was batting at three. Not about me, wanted to win this match for India, and wanted to take this through. Today was not about my fifty or my hundred, about making India win,” she added.

India win over Australia in a record chase

The thrilling semifinal in Navi Mumbai turned into a night to remember as India chased down a massive 339-run target to knock out the seven-time world champions. Jemimah Rodrigues made the most of Australia’s dropped catches, while captain Harmanpreet Kaur played a crucial knock of 89 runs to guide India home.

For Australia, Kim Garth (2/46) and Annabel Sutherland (2/69) took key wickets, but poor fielding cost them dearly. Earlier, Australia had posted 338/6 with Phoebe Litchfield’s 119, Ellyse Perry’s 77, and Ashleigh Gardner’s 65 setting up a strong total. India’s young spinner Shree Charani impressed with 2/49, while Deepti Sharma also took two wickets. The win not only sent India into the final but also marked the end of Australia’s long World Cup dominance.