Jemimah Rodrigues went full hyper as early as the second over on Saturday. The truth was she was desperate with questions for her team-mates, but nobody had the answers. Delhi Capitals had two big appeals in an over against the in-form Smriti Mandhana off Marizanne Kapp and when both were turned down, it was naturally down to the new captain to decide whether to review or not.
The first was when there was a noise down leg off Mandhana's flick and Rodrigues quickly went to Kapp and wicketkeeper Lizelle Lee, frantically asking whether to review or not. It seemed like she didn't get a conclusive reply, and she kept turning her head from one player to another with her eyes popping out and the 15-second timer counted down. Kapp eventually put her hands up while shaking her head slightly to say she wasn't sure, but Rodrigues signaled the 'T' anyway. And nine balls into the game she had burnt a review.
The same drama happened four balls later. Kapp and Lee appealed for lbw. Rodrigues hurried to Lee - also a qualified umpire in Australia - but got very little input. The bowler was unsure as well. The clock was ticking. There was barely a second left when Rodrigues called for the DRS. But the no-ball siren had gone off. In the next over, the replay on the big screen showed had Kapp not overstepped, Mandhana would have been given out. Kapp let out a couple of cuss words near the boundary.
This is Rodrigues' first season as captain on a big stage, outside the domestic circuit, with multiple cameras zooming in on her every decision and big crowds turning up to support the opposition. The scrutiny of her leadership skills has been microscopic, with international names like Laura Wolvaardt and Kapp playing under her. Not to forget, she has to follow Meg Lanning, who left behind a legacy of making three WPL finals in a row.
When Royal Challengers Bengaluru picked up pace to move to 61 for 1 after nine overs, the pressure was on Rodrigues, with her team ranked fourth on the WPL table, to make something happen. Rodrigues introduced Minnu Mani for an offspinner's match-up against Mandhana, as bringing on Sneh Rana earlier hadn't really worked. It straightaway translated into a wicket as DC packed the leg side boundary, Mani tossed the ball up outside leg from over the wicket and Mandhana found one of the fielders with her slog sweep.
DC created further inroads with spin when Shree Charani also struck from the other end. RCB were under pressure now and Rodrigues had a choice to make now. Continue with pace off the ball or gamble with Kapp's last over even though the match had gone just past the halfway stage of the first innings. She chose to gamble and it reaped dividends when Kapp rattled Georgia Voll's middle stump. Rodrigues hared across to hug Kapp so tight, it was a mix of relief and jubilation.
In the reverse fixture, Rodrigues had saved Kapp's fourth over for the end and it may have allowed RCB to solidify their position. By the time DC's best wicket-taking threat was back, the ask was only 24 runs off 24 balls.
"I think [Rodrigues] was excellent today," Wolvaardt said after the game, where RCB were bowled out for 109. "A lot of really good decisions - I think bringing Kappie back for that fourth over and getting a wicket, a brave move but it paid off. I think she's been excellent around the group. She's a really bubbly person, she has a lot of energy to give to the group, so it's been awesome. She knows how to connect with people and talk to people, so she's been excellent with that."
Rodrigues wasn't just relying on her bowlers to get the breakthroughs. She had plans of her own.
With the dangerous Nadine de Klerk on strike in the death overs, Rodrigues packed the batter's favoured leg-side boundary and positioned herself at mid-off. Chinelle Henry tempted the big shot and the RCB batter veered away from her strength and tried to go over the off side. The connection wasn't good enough and Rodrigues herself claimed the skier near the edge of the circle.
It seemed like the captain whose team had been thrashed by RCB by eight wickets only a week ago had started to pick up the tricks of the trade.
"I've not gotten white hair so far so it's fine (laughs)," Rodrigues said at the presentation. "But I think I'm really enjoying it, every game is so different but I'm also giving myself space to make mistakes. Even learning from the mistakes of the past. I remember the last time against RCB, I kept Kappie for later just thinking what if we need her in the death. But today I was like what if she gets a wicket and that happened. So that was my learning from there. I think as long as you're learning, you can never make mistakes, if that makes sense."
When the winning runs were hit, a still padded-up Rodrigues stood still to calmly applaud her players from the dugout before turning to Mani for one of the gentlest hugs she must have offered on the day. With two matches to go and currently placed second, DC will hope the same Rodrigues that led them to victory against the table-toppers on Saturday will show them the way for the knockouts as well.