Image Credit- ACC
Following a left hand injury, Shreyanka Patil has been ruled out of the women’s Asia Cup. The Asian Cricket Council reported in a press release on Saturday that the 21-year-old Indian offspinner “sustained a fracture to her left hand’s fourth finger.”
Shreyanka participated fully in the team’s first-ever tournament match on Friday against Pakistan, bowling 3.2 overs and accumulating 2 for 14. With seven wickets remaining and India winning in 14.2 overs, she was not required to bat. The 26-year-old left-arm spinner Tanuja Kanwar, who plays for the Railways in domestic cricket and the Gujarat Giants in the WPL, has been called up as a substitute.
Shreyanka made her Indian debut in December 2023, following up her strong WPL performances. She went on to win the title with Royal Challengers Bengaluru this year, having claimed the most wickets of any bowler with 13 at an economy rate of 7.30 and an average of 12.07. Only two of the 12 T20Is that Shreyanka has participated in for India have seen her go without a wicket. In three ODIs, she has also represented her nation.
Kanwar, who was up in Himachal Pradesh, was also quite successful in the WPL. The Giants paid INR 50 lakh for her in 2023. She had played a standout role for Railways in the One Day Trophy final, taking three wickets for twenty-six, average 11.16, and giving up just 2.43 runs per over, a week prior to that auction.
With 10 wickets from eight games at an average of 20.70 and an economy rate of 7.13, Kanwar concluded the 2024 WPL season. Her left-arm spin is renowned for a variation in which she bowls it from far behind the popping crease.
India’s next match at the women’s Asia Cup is on Sunday against the UAE in Dambulla.