Harmanpreet Kaur suffered a thumb injury which she sustained and that has ruled her out of the first ODI against Australia, with doubts even on her participation in the second ODI.
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The India women’s cricket team suffered a big blow ahead of the ODI series against Australia. Harmanpreet Kaur, who has had a good record against Australia in the past, has been ruled out of the first ODI due to a thumb injury. The development was confirmed by India women’s cricket team head coach Ramesh Powar during the pre-match press conference. Harmanpreet had missed the warm-up game and there were doubts that her injury would not heal in time for the first ODI.
Apart from Harmanpreet, Shikha Pandey and Jemimah Rodrigues are also not playing the first ODI. Rodrigues, who was one of the stars for the Northern Superstars in The Hundred tournament, will also not be part of the first ODI. Apart from Harmanpreet, Shikha Pandey and Rodrigues had also not participated in the warm-up game.
The year 2021 has not been kind to Harmanpreet. She had to end her tenure in The Hundred due to a quad injury that she sustained. She returned to India where she was in the preparatory camp for the series in Australia. The Indian women’s cricket team has been in quarantine in Australia for the last 14 days due to coronavirus restrictions.
These restrictions and the situation in Australia have resulted in the entire series being played in only one or two venues. The Delta variant has surged in Australia, with over 1500 cases being reported on a daily basis. Initially, the Test match was supposed to be held in Perth but it has now been shifted to the Carrara Oval in Queensland. All the ODIs are set to be played at Harrup Park in Mackay. The three T20Is will also take place at the Carrara Oval.
With Harmanpreet Kaur not playing, the middle order now has a big hole. Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana are aggressive openers and they will be expected to give India a big start. Mithali Raj will continue to play with solidity in her 22nd year of international cricket. With Jemimah Rodrigues also absent, the middle order will be dependant totally on Mithali.
India is touring Australia for a Test after 15 years. They had toured in 2006 but had lost the match. When India toured Australia for a bilateral series in 2016, they created history by winning the Twenty20 International series. India will become the second team after England to play the Pink Ball Test in women’s cricket. During the Women’s Ashes Test in 2017, England and Australia played a Pink Ball Test at the North Sydney Oval. The match was remembered for the brilliant double century by Ellyse Perry.
The home team is also missing some stars as the mental toll of the lockdown and the quarantine increases. India has run Australia close in the last couple of years, with Harmanpreet’s brilliant 171 in the 2017 World Cup semi-final proving to be the ultimate clincher. Before the 2020 ICC World T20, India had reached the final of a tri-series where they lost to the Aussies. In the final of the major tournament, Alyssa Healy managed to smash India and ensure Australia won the T20 World Cup for the fifth time.
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