India's hopes hit as Pratika Rawal ruled out of Women's Cricket World Cup semifinals
- - India's hopes hit as Pratika Rawal ruled out of Women's Cricket World Cup semifinals
October 27, 2025 at 9:38 PM
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1 / 2India Women's Cricket WCupIndia's Pratika Rawal celebrates her century during the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup cricket match between India and New Zealand at DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, India, Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)
NEW DELHI (AP) — India's hopes of winning a first Women's Cricket World Cup title have been dented with the injury-enforced withdrawal of opening batter Pratika Rawal for the semifinal against defending champion Australia.
The in-form Rawal was forced off the field after injuring her ankle attempting to save a boundary in India's last league-stage game on Sunday, which ended in a washout against Bangladesh.
“Tough to sit out due to injury, but my heart is with the team,” Rawal said in a social media post. "Best of luck, India!”
She scored 308 runs in the league stage of the tournament — including a century in a decisive win over New Zealand — second only to teammate Smriti Mandhana’s 365.
The International Cricket Council approved Shafali Verma as a late replacement in the squad for Rawal.
India placed fourth in the league stage, which included a high-scoring loss to Australia.
England and South Africa will meet Wednesday in the first of the semifinals, a day ahead of the Australia-India game.
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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
Source: “AOL Sports”
