India have been dealt a major blow in their ongoing ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 campaign in England, with rising star Shreyanka Patil ruled out of the remainder of the tournament due to an ankle ligament injury.
Patil sustained the injury while fielding during the final over of the Powerplay in India’s emphatic win over the Netherlands earlier this week in Leeds.
The off-spinner was chasing the ball off her own bowling towards mid-on when she twisted her ankle. She appeared to be in significant pain and required medical attention on the field.
Unable to put any weight on her right leg, Patil was eventually stretchered off.
India have named Prema Rawat as her replacement, handing the leg-spinner her maiden national call-up.
This is not the first
time injury has derailed Patil’s World Cup aspirations. She missed the 2024 T20 World Cup with a broken finger, before another injury sidelined her for nearly a year.
The 23-year-old has taken 29 wickets in 24 T20Is at an economy rate of 6.98.
Who is Prema Rawat?
The 24-year-old Rawat hails from Uttarakhand and is a leg-spinner. While she is yet to make her domestic debut, she has featured for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Women’s Premier League.
Rawat was also part of the Rising Stars Women’s Asia Cup, where she claimed eight wickets at an economy rate of 4.27 as India A lifted the title.
She was also included in the India A squad that toured England for a white-ball series.
India’s Winning Start to the T20 World Cup
Harmanpreet Kaur-led India have begun their campaign in impressive fashion, registering back-to-back victories.
They outclassed Pakistan by 64 runs in their tournament opener after posting 170/6 in Birmingham.
India then faced tournament debutants Netherlands, who proved no match for the reigning ODI world champions. After piling up 209/5, India bowled out their opponents for 114 in 17.3 overs to complete a dominant win.
India will next take on South Africa in Manchester on Sunday.
