Renuka Singh Out: Jintimani Kalita Joins India Squad for Zimbabwe ODI Series
Pacer Renuka Singh Thakur is ruled out of India's ODI series against Zimbabwe. Jintimani Kalita joins the squad as her replacement.
The Indian women's cricket team has faced a significant setback ahead of their three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe, as lead pacer Renuka Singh Thakur has been ruled out of the competition. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed that the fast bowler is currently focusing on building the necessary bowling workload for the 50-over format at the BCCI Centre of Excellence.
Jintimani Kalita Steps In
To fill the void left by Renuka Singh, the Women’s Selection Committee has named Jintimani Kalita as her replacement. Kalita, who was recently a part of the squad during the T20I series held in Raipur, has already traveled to Baroda to join her teammates. The ODI series is scheduled to commence this Friday in Vadodara.
"Fast bowler Renuka Singh Thakur has been ruled out of the upcoming Muthoot FinCorp three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe. She is still building up the bowling volume required for the 50-over format at the BCCI Centre of Excellence," the BCCI stated.
Momentum from T20I Dominance
While the loss of a key pacer is a blow, the Indian side enters the ODI series with immense confidence following a clinical 3-0 whitewash of Zimbabwe in the T20I series in Raipur. India's path to the clean sweep was marked by absolute dominance in all departments:
- First T20I (Oct 16): India secured a four-wicket victory, chasing down Zimbabwe's 114/5 to reach 116/6 in just 15.4 overs.
- Second T20I (Oct 18): The bowlers dominated again, restricting Zimbabwe to 102/8. India chased the target in a mere 8.5 overs for a nine-wicket win.
- Third T20I (Oct 20): India posted a massive 216/7 and limited Zimbabwe to 124/7, winning by 92 runs to seal the series.
India's Updated ODI Squad
With the addition of Kalita and the leadership of Smriti Mandhana, the updated squad for the series in Vadodara is as follows:
Smriti Mandhana [C], Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Harmanpreet Kaur, Harleen Deol, Tejal Hasabnis, Deepti Sharma [VC], Richa Ghosh [WK], Yastika Bhatia [WK], Vaishnavi Sharma, Nandni Sharma, Sree Charani, Kranti Gaud, Sayali Satghare, Jintimani Kalita.