Renuka Singh Thakur Out of ODI Series Against Zimbabwe, Jintimani Kalita Takes Her Place
Indian womens cricket team faces a setback as Renuka Singh Thakur is ruled out of the ODI series against Zimbabwe, with Jintimani Kalita stepping in.
Vadodara, October 22 (Daily Kiran) : The Indian women’s cricket team has suffered a setback ahead of their three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe. Fast bowler Renuka Singh Thakur has been ruled out of the series, and all-rounder Jintimani Kalita has been named as her replacement.
Renuka was part of the victorious team at the Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 but did not participate in the recent Asia Cup in Dubai or the Asian Games in Japan, where India secured gold.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that Renuka, who last played an ODI against Australia in Hobart earlier this year, is currently working on her bowling capabilities at the Bengaluru-based Center of Excellence. She is focusing on developing the stamina needed to bowl 10 overs, which is crucial for the ODI format, and thus will not be available for this series.
BCCI Secretary Devjeet Saikia stated, “She is currently working on achieving the necessary bowling capacity for the 50-over format at the BCCI Center of Excellence. Jintimani, who was part of the recent T20 series in Raipur, has joined the team in Vadodara, where the ODI series will commence tomorrow.”
Jintimani has been retained by the Gujarat Giants for the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2027 and is now part of India’s fast bowling group, which includes Kranti Gaud, Nandani Sharma, and Sayali Satghare.
The spin department appears strong, featuring options like vice-captain Deepti Sharma, Shri Charani, and Vaishnavi Sharma. This series marks the first ODI challenge for India under the captaincy of Smriti Mandhana across all formats.
Zimbabwe will face a tough challenge against the reigning ODI world champions at the BCA Stadium in Vadodara. All three matches are scheduled to start at 2 PM IST. The first ODI will be held on Friday, followed by the second match on Sunday, and the final match on Wednesday.
The Indian ODI squad includes Smriti Mandhana (captain), Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Harmanpreet Kaur, Harleen Deol, Tejal Hasbnis, Deepti Sharma (vice-captain), Richa Ghosh (wicketkeeper), Yastika Bhatia (wicketkeeper), Vaishnavi Sharma, Nandani Sharma, Shri Charani, Kranti Gaud, Sayali Satghare, and Jintimani Kalita.
