Due to a knee injury, Harleen Deol of the Gujarat Giants will miss the rest of the current WPL 2024, according to Cricbuzz. Bharti Fulmali, a batter for Vidarbha, has been called in as a substitute player and was shown warming up with the squad on Wednesday, March 6, before their first game of the Delhi leg against Royal Challengers Bangalore.
In the first over of UP Warriorz’s chase against the Giants in Bengaluru – their third league game – Deol hurt her already heavily strapped left knee while fielding. She immediately hobbled off the pitch. Since then, the batting-all-rounder has not played again. Deol was seen in Delhi, even though he wasn’t wearing the Giants uniform, watching their match versus RCB.
Gujarat Giants were also left fretting over the match fitness of their vice-captain Sneh Rana, who has now missed two successive games due to an undisclosed illness. Cricbuzz however understands Rana has recovered well and will be available for selection for Giants’ next fixture, against defending champions Mumbai Indians on Saturday (March 9).
The Giants have suffered a great deal of injuries this season, but they eventually managed to get on the scoreboard against RCB with a 19-run victory. Their speed department had a few of significant pre-tournament injury blows, the most significant of which was the uncapped fast-bowling phenom Kashvee Gautam, who they bought for INR 2 crore. After undergoing surgery to remove skin cancer from her neck, Lauren Cheatle, an Australian, was forced to withdraw from WPL 2024. The Australian was replaced in the Giants’ lineup by experienced New Zealand pacer Lea Tahuhu, and Mumbai’s Sayali Sathgare was called in to take Gautam’s spot.
The Giants had started the season with a four-game losing run until the Beth Mooney-led team eventually found some success with the new location. To eventually get off the mark, they gave RCB an enormous 200-run target and then wrapped up a commanding 19-run victory. Nonetheless, they remain at the bottom of the five-team standings.
