India legspinner Asha Sobhana suffered a knee injury shortly after the toss for their final Group A match of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024 against Australia in Sharjah, leading to her being ruled out of the contest.
Left-arm spin all-rounder Radha Yadav stepped in to replace Sobhana in the playing XI.
The injury incident occurred on the sidelines of the toss, where Sobhana was initially named among the starting eleven.
She was later taken for a medical assessment and did not join the rest of the team for the national anthems.
In accordance with ICC Playing Conditions, India submitted a formal request to match referee Shandre Fritz and needed approval from the opposing captain, Tahlia McGrath, who is filling in for the injured Alyssa Healy.
As a replacement rather than a substitute, Radha can contribute both with bat and ball in this match.
According to ICC Playing Conditions section 1.2.1, “Each captain shall nominate 11 players plus a maximum of four substitute fielders in writing on the team sheet provided by the ICC.
Other than set out in clause 1.2.7 [pertaining to concussion subs], no player (member of the playing eleven) may be changed after the nomination and prior to the start of play without the consent of the opposing captain.”
This marks Radha’s first official appearance in the T20 World Cup 2024, having previously filled in as a substitute for captain Harmanpreet Kaur in India’s last game against Sri Lanka in Dubai.
“The BCCI medical team is monitoring Asha’s progress,” the board stated shortly after play commenced.
Sobhana had been a key player in India’s previous three Group A matches, claiming five wickets at an economy rate of 5.41.
Her best performance came against Sri Lanka, where she took 3 wickets for 19 runs in four overs.
Australia also faced injury challenges leading up to this match, with regular captain Healy sidelined due to a right foot injury.
Additionally, pacer Tayla Vlaeminck, who dislocated her shoulder while fielding against Pakistan, was officially replaced in the squad by Heather Graham just before the game.
This match serves as the last group game for both India and Australia, with both teams vying for semifinal spots.
Australia remains unbeaten at the top of the standings with six points from three games and a strong net run rate of +2.786, while India sits in second place with an NRR of +0.576.
Leave a Reply