Women’s ODI World Cup | Grace Harris furthers Australia’s injury woes after being ruled out with calf injury

‌Australia’s injury woes deepened further ahead of the ICC Women’s ODI World Cup, with Grace Harris being ruled out with a calf strain. She will now be replaced by medium-pacer Heather Graham for the marquee event, which will commence in India and Sri Lanka from September 30.

Harris injured her calf while fielding against India in the third and final ODI at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Incidentally, that was the only match that the off-spinner featured in during the three-match series, which the visitors won 2-1. She had come into the playing eleven in place of Anabel Sutherland, who was ruled out of the game with hip soreness.

Though Harris was not expected to feature in the starting eleven of the Australian Women’s team, she was seen as a key spinner who could also add value with her big-hitting, in case of an injury crisis. The all-rounder has represented the Aussies in 12 games, picking up 12 wickets at an average of 20.33 and a strike rate of 33.5. Her replacement, Graham, played a solitary game for the defending champions against Sri Lanka in October 2019.

Harris’ injury deepens Australia’s injury crisis ahead of the big-ticket event, with batter Phoebe Litchfield and pacer Darcie Brown missing the last two ODIs with quad issues and back spasms, respectively. Left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux did not feature in any of the matches against India, while Georgia Wareham and Alyssa Healy managed to play all games after returning from injuries.

The seven-time World Cup winners start their campaign against New Zealand Women in Indore on October 1.