Mumbai
As India ramps up preparations for the much-awaited Women’s ODI World Cup at home, the absence of its frontline fast bowlers has emerged as a worrying trend. Renuka Singh Thakur, Pooja Vastrakar, and Titas Sadhu have all been sidelined following injuries sustained after the 2025 Women’s Premier League (WPL), leaving India to rely on an inexperienced pace attack in recent series against Sri Lanka and England.
Despite the setbacks, India managed to win the ODI tri-series in Sri Lanka and secure both ODI and T20I series victories in England. Young pacers Kranti Goud, Amanjot Kaur, and Arundhati Reddy stepped up, but the lack of frontline options so close to a World Cup has raised alarms. While Titas has been included in the India ‘A’ squad for the upcoming Australia tour in August, uncertainty surrounds the recoveries of Renuka and Pooja, with the latter undergoing shoulder surgery three months ago.
The recurring injuries have sparked questions about systemic workload management. A fast bowler would play 10-15 matches in a year, but now they are probably touching 35-40 or even 50 games in a year, a source familiar with the situation told IANS. There are multiple national and state-level camps, WPL training sessions, and personal practice schedules—overall, fast bowlers are bowling far more than three years ago.
Data supports the concern: in 2018-19, a senior domestic cricketer would typically play only a handful of T20 and 50-over matches, even with challenger trophies. The post-Covid calendar, however, has expanded drastically, and experts fear that unless workload patterns are addressed, India’s fast-bowling resources may remain under threat during a crucial World Cup year.