Shafali Verma Left Out As India Name Squad For Australia Series

The dashing young Indian opener Shafali Verma has been axed from the squad ahead of their 3-match ODI tour against Australia. This exclusion comes on the back of a poor T20 World Cup where she scored just 97 runs in 5 games followed by a poor tally of 56 runs in the ODI series against New Zealand at home.

on a surprising note, Verma breached the score of 30 for the first time as an opener in a long period of two years. Verma's last ODI fifty came back in 2022.

Another big name omitted from the Indian Women's Squad is Shreyanka Patil, who has been under an injury cloud in the last 3-5 months. Shreyanka played in the Women's T20 World Cup after a finger injury. Patil was then sidelined from the ODI series against New Zealand due to shin splits.

Dayalan Hemalatha, Uma Chettry & Sayali Satgare are the other notable players who are missing from the squad list of Team India.

Meanwhile, Harleen Deol has earned a recall after being sidelined for a long time. Deol last represented India in the white ball format in 2023. A foot injury restricted her to just 3 games in the WPL. Deol's injury needed a lengthy recovery.

Regular Keeper-batter Richa Ghosh is also back in the squad, after having missed the previous series against New Zealand due to her class 12 board exams. Meanwhile, wrist spinner Asha Shobhana & Star All-rounder Pooja Vastrakar continue to remain absent due to their injuries which they sustained in the Women's T20 World Cup.

Squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Priya Punia, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harleen Deol, Yastika Bhatia (WK), Richa Ghosh (WK), Tejal Hasabnis, Deepti Sharma, Minnu Mani, Priya Mishra, Radha Yadav, Titas Sadhu, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Saima Thakor

The selectors also chose to reward Minnu Mani with a maiden call-up to the ODI squad while also including fast bowler Titas Sadhu. The 20-year-old Sadhu was an unused member of the ODI squad in last year's home series against Australia. She made a mark in the opening T20Is against the same opposition in Navi Mumbai, bagging a memorable 4 for 17. Sadhu also featured in a pair of T20Is against Bangladesh in May this year but was then laid low by an injury that necessitated a stint at the NCA.

Tejal Hasabnis retained her place in the squad after having played a matured innings of 42 in the first ODI against New Zealand which allowed India to set up a decent total. Priya Punia, who last played for the national team in a home ODI against South Africa has also earned a spot.

Series Schedule:

1st ODI - December 5, Allan Border Field, Brisbane

2nd ODI - December 8, Allan Border Field, Brisbane

3rd ODI - December 11, WACA, Perth