Indian wicketkeeper-batter Yastika Bhatia underwent successful surgery for her knee injury and is now aiming to make her comeback as soon as possible. The recovery time will, however, rule her out for the upcoming women’s ODI World Cup at home, which begins later this month.
Bhatia hurt her left knee during India’s preparatory camp for the World Cup in Visakhapatnam, as per a release by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Wicketkeeper-batter Uma Chetry was drafted into the Women in Blue’s squad for the recent home ODI series against Australia and the World Cup.
“In the past few days, I’ve had to face some tough situations after sustaining knee injury,” Bhatia said in an update shared on Instagram. “I’m still processing it all, but
I’m grateful to share that the surgery went well. I’m thankful to my doctors and to everyone who has shown me so much love and support💙 My focus now is on recovery, staying strong, and returning to the field as soon as possible. My love for this game and the honor of representing my country at the highest level will keep me going💪🏏,” she added.
It’s a big blow for both Bhatia and the team, though the exact extent of her injury and the connected recovery time is unknown. She last played an ODI in October 2024.
Her inclusion in the Australia series came after an impressive performance for India A in Australia, where she scored 59, 66, and 42 in three 50-over games. Chetry hasn’t impressed much at the highest level yet, and even against Australia A, she had scores of 3, 0 and 31.
For the World Cup, that puts all the wicketkeeping responsibility on Richa Ghosh, who’s the first choice, is still young and the most promising wicketkeeper in the country, but can be susceptible to bouts of bad form and decision-making.
India’s squad for Women’s ODI World Cup: Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Smriti Mandhana (vice-capt), Pratika Rawal, Harleen Deol, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy, Richa Ghosh (WK), Kranti Gaud, Amanjot Kaur, Radha Yadav, Sree Charani, Sneh Rana, Uma Chetry (WK)
