Women's World Cup 2025: Shafali Verma Takes Pratika Rawal's Place

Opening batter Shafali Verma has been brought back into the India team on Monday after being selected as Pratika Rawal’s replacement in the Women’s World Cup squad, just in time for the semifinal against Australia in Navi Mumbai on Thursday.

She was left out of both the main squad and the reserves when the 15-member team was announced back in August.

The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 has approved Shafali Verma as a replacement for Pratika Rawal in the India squad.

Verma was named as a replacement after Rawal was ruled out due to an injury to her right ankle while fielding in the league match against Bangladesh on Sunday.

Replacement Process

“The replacement of a player requires the approval of the Event Technical Committee before the replacement player can be officially added to the squad”, an ICC press release stated.

Verma’s inclusion comes after Rawal was sidelined because of an ankle injury she picked up during the final league match against Bangladesh in Navi Mumbai.

The 25-year-old hurt herself after she overran and twisted her ankle while attempting to stop a ball and didn’t come out to bat in the second innings.

Verma has played 29 ODIs for India, scoring 644 runs at an average of 23.

She has four half centuries to her name in her 50-over career, with her highest score being 71 not out.

Her last ODI appearance for India was against New Zealand in Ahmedabad in October 2024.

The right-handed batter was part of the team that exited in the league phase of the 2022 ODI World Cup in New Zealand.

Neetu David, who wrapped up her time as the chair of the women’s senior selection committee after revealing the World Cup squad, mentioned that Verma was included in the plans, but the selectors opted not to make too many alterations to the existing team.

“Shafali Verma is definitely part of our setup. Currently, she’s playing in Australia, and we’re keeping tabs on her. The goal is that the more she plays, the more experience she gains, which will benefit India in the long run, especially in the 50-over format. We prefer not to shake up the team too much”, David stated.

What Shafali brings to the table

Rawal provided stability and composure to India’s top order and demonstrated her capacity to play significant innings during the match against New Zealand.

Verma could introduce a fresh dynamic during the powerplay overs.

Her aggressive style could give India an early boost in the innings and put opposing bowlers under pressure.

Although the 50-over format has different demands than T20s, Verma’s knack for making the most of field restrictions could be a real asset, creating challenges for opposing captains trying to set fields against her.

Her explosive start could also help Smriti Mandhana ease into her innings more comfortably.

India would definitely appreciate it if Verma could also play some lengthy innings, but if she can kick off quickly and set a strong tempo, it would relieve some pressure off the rest of the batting lineup.

India has struggled to boost their scoring rate during the middle overs, especially with the opposition captain tightening the screws with spin.

If Verma can bring some early aggression to the top of the order, the middle order can then focus on batting at a steady pace, confident that they’re on track for a substantial total.