India quick Pooja Vastrakar is set to miss at least the opening two weeks of the Women’s Premier League after straining a hamstring on the eve of her release from the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence.
RCB head coach Malolan Rangarajan confirmed the setback moments after his side edged Mumbai Indians in Friday night’s thriller at DY Patil Stadium.
“I think two days prior to her release from the [BCCI’s Centre of Excellence], she unfortunately tweaked her hamstring,” he said. “The information we have at the moment is that she’s going to [need] two weeks more. It’s a hamstring issue. She was there for her shoulder and now it’s a hamstring issue. So it’s a week-by-week process. So let’s see where she’s at.”
Key facts
• Vastrakar, signed for INR 85 lakh in November, last played competitively at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
• The right-armer was already rehabbing a shoulder problem when the hamstring went.
• RCB beat MI by four wickets in their opener; they face UP Warriorz on Monday, again in Navi Mumbai.
Analysis
The timing hurts RCB more than the length of the lay-off. Rangarajan had previously argued that Vastrakar “changes a lot of things for RCB as far as combinations are concerned”, chiefly by allowing an extra specialist batter or spinner. Without her, the new-look attack relied on England left-arm spinner Linsey Smith to start with the new ball and drafted seamer Arundhati Reddy in both disciplines.
Smith’s 0-for-23 from two overs was serviceable, Reddy’s 0-for-37 from four less so. As it turned out, South Africa all-rounder Nadine de Klerk papered over most cracks, becoming only the second WPL player to combine a half-century with a four-for.
“The value of allrounders came to the fore,” Rangarajan noted after RCB recovered from 65 for 5 to chase 152. He added, almost wearily: “My blood pressure, everything is okay. I’ve gotten used to this. I’ve been with RCB for six years. Very good to be on the winning side.”
He credited De Klerk’s planning at the time-out: “Nadine was very clear with her plan, how she was going to approach the next 11 overs… She wanted to chase down upwards of eight in the last four and then there was a plan of how to approach the next two overs in blocks. Aru [Reddy] also did a very, very good job.”
What next?
RCB can ill-afford more injuries; their seam reserves are already thin. Vastrakar is pencilled in for a reassessment midway through the tournament. If the hamstring responds, she could be available for the final league fixtures and any knock-out run. If not, RCB must continue juggling skills and overs until their most versatile Indian bowler is genuinely fit.
