India were dealt a blow on the eve of their second group-stage clash of Women's Asia Cup 2024, against the United Arab Emirates. Off-spinner Shreyanka Patil was ruled out of the rest of the tournament owing to a fractured finger, the Asian Cricket Council on Saturday (July 20) informed via a media release. (Full Coverage | More Cricket News)
Patil suffered the injury during India's win in the opening encounter against arch-rivals Pakistan, and will be replaced by left-arm spinner Tanuja Kanwer.
Patil was injured while trying to take a catch in the second game of the Asia Cup. She sustained a fracture on the fourth finger of her left hand. But she continued to bowl till the end of Pakistan's innings, sending down 3.2 overs to finish with figures of 2-14 as Pakistan were dismissed for 108 runs.
The Harmanpreet Kaur-led India comprehensively won the match against Pakistan, handing them a seven-wicket defeat by chasing down the target in 14.1 overs. They will next take on the UAE on Sunday afternoon.
The 21-year-old Patil had earlier suffered a hairline fracture in the same hand during Women's Premier League 2024 and subsequently missed some of Royal Challengers Bengaluru's games before making a strong comeback at the business end.
Patil returned to scalp a four-fer in the final, setting up the title win for RCB against Delhi Capitals. With that, Patil had bagged the Purple Cap and was also voted as the Emerging Player of the Season.
Her replacement Kanwer also had a good WPL 2024 as she finished as Gujarat Giants' leading wicket-taker, with 10 wickets in eight games at an economy rate of 7.13. This is the 26-year-old left-arm spinner's maiden India call-up, though she was already named in the travelling reserves for the Asia Cup.
Kanwer had also been picked for the India A squad for the upcoming multi-format tour of Australia, beginning August 7.
