Cricketer Jemimah Rodrigues opened up about her struggle with anxiety after emerging as the game-changer in India's thrilling semifinal victory against Australia at the Women's World Cup 2025 on Thursday (October 30). While interacting with media, Jemimah got emotional as she confessed about battling anxiety.
Reacting to her video, several Bollywood celebrities lauded her for speaking openly and showing strength in vulnerability.
Deepika Padukone, who has been appointed as the first-ever 'Mental Health Ambassador' by the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, took to her Instagram story on Friday and wrote, "Thank you Jemimah Rodrigues for your vulnerability and for sharing your story (folded hand emoji)."
Actor Rajkummar Rao wrote, "Thank you for your contribution. We all are super proud of you."
Saif Ali Khan's sister Saba Pataudi and actress Diana Penty called jEmimah a 'champion'.
Filmmaker Tahira Kashyap wrote, "You being us glory @jemimahrodrigues ❤️❤️"
Other Bollywood celebs like Bhumi Pednekar, Homi Adajania, Surbhi Jyoti, Rajshri Deshpande, Rhea Kapoor, Mithila Palkar, Pragya Jaiswal and others also supported Jemimah.
For those unversed, Jemimah spoke candidly about her struggle with anxiety. In the clip, she expressed gratitude to her friends and teammates for standing by her through difficult times. Her honesty has also earned praise from fans.
The cricketer also opened up about the moments when she broke down in front of her mother and her friends.
"I'll be very vulnerable here because I know if someone is watching this – might be going through the same thing and that's my whole purpose of saying it because nobody likes to talk about their weakness," she said in the now-viral video.
Jemimah added, "I was going through a lot of anxiety at the start of the tournament and it was a lot before few games also I used to call my mum and cry the entire time, let it all out, because when you're going through anxiety, you just feel numb. You don't know what to do. You're trying to be yourself. And also in this time, my mum and my dad, they supported me a lot."
Jemimah also revealed that her struggle deepened after being dropped from the team, which left her questioning herself and her abilities. Sitting out made her feel helpless as she had always wanted to contribute to the game, and returning to the field brought additional pressure given all that had unfolded in the previous month.
She concluded by expressing gratitude to those who continued to believe in her during her toughest phase.
