India blow for the Indian women’s team, opening batter Pratika Rawal has been ruled out of the upcoming one-off Test against England women at the iconic Lord’s, which will mark the first-ever women’s Test at the Home of Cricket. Rawal was in line to add to her maiden Test cap, which she achieved during a Test against Australia earlier in March at the WACA.
However, a recent setback rules her out of the Lord’s Test, with Priya Punia named her replacement for the one-off match that will be played from July 10 to 13, coach Amol Muzumdar revealed on Wednesday, July 8. Pratika wasn’t picked in India’s T20 World Cup squad and is yet to make her T20I debut, but would have hoped to feature in the Lord’s Test after playing in two of the three One-dayers for India A in England.
Pratika was ruled out of ODI World Cup midway
The opening batter was hit by a major injury issue during an impressive Women’s ODI World Cup 2025, when she picked up a severe ankle and knee injury during the group stage game against Bangladesh. That saw her miss the remainder of the World Cup, which India went on to win and add her in the victory celebrations for what she had done in the previous matches at the global showpiece. The opening batter was the second-highest run-scorer for the Women in Blue, having scored 308 runs in six innings. Due to the injury, she was forced to miss the Women’s Premier League and the entire domestic season.
Call-up for Priya Punia after recent exploits
Meanwhile, Punia has been called into the squad after her recent exploits in the India A one-dayers against the English side. She scored two half-centuries in two of the three matches and was the cornerstone in India A’s 2-1 win over England A. She last played for India in December 2024 after earning a call-up for the ODIs, while she is yet to make her Test debut.ย
A historic Test awaits India
While India were knocked out of the Women’s T20 World Cup from the group stage itself, a historic Lord’s Test awaits the Women in Blue. This will be the first-ever international red-ball game at the iconic venue, 92 years after the first Women’s Test was played in 1934 in Brisbane between Australia and England.
ALSO READ |ย For first time in their history! India register big unwanted record with England loss in third T20I