Indian team were dealt a blow ahead of the three-match One-Day International series against England as vice-captain Harmanpreet Kaur was ruled out due to an ankle injury.
“Kaur was unable to participate fully in the team training session because of pain and will now head to NCA in Bengaluru for her rehab,” a BCCI press release said.
Kaur will be replaced by Himachal Pradesh all-rounder Harleen Deol.
Deol made a 29-ball 21 in the warm-up match batting at No 4 for Board President’s XI against reigning World Champions England. She also sent down six overs of spin for 40 runs without taking a wicket.
A report in ESPNCricinfo added Kaur was seen training at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai to assess her fitness but scans later revealed “a grade-2 tear in the left ankle.”
Kaur’s injury comes on the back of some indifferent form with the bat, as she scored 21 runs in the ODI series (in one innings) and 24 runs in three T20Is combined on India’s recent tour of New Zealand.
The three-match ODI series against England is part of the ICC Women’s Championship that determines automatic qualifiers for the next World Cup in 2021.
India squad for ODI series: Mithali Raj (Captain), Jhulan Goswami, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Taniya Bhatia (wicket-keeper), R Kalpana (wicket-keeper), Mona Meshram, Ekta Bisht, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Poonam Yadav, Shikha Pandey, Mansi Joshi, Punam Raut, Harleen Deol.