Bhatia Returns to Form After Long Absence
Yastika Bhatia felt as though she had to start again while recovering from knee surgery. However, she played like if she had been in the top order forever, striking her first T20I fifty to help India defeat England in a comfortable first-up match.
She had demonstrated good form in practice, which batting partner Jemimah Rodrigues reminded her of at the crease when she said, “Let’s build a partnership.” There was little indication that this was her first international match since October 2024 or her first Twenty20 International in almost two years.
They had to, as Lauren Bell’s double-strike in the opening over of the game dismissed Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma, leaving their team 7 for 2. Harmanpreet Kaur was rested for the first of three games that would conclude India’s competitive preparations for the T20 World Cup next month, thus they had to play without her in the lineup.
And they achieved a 38-run triumph at Chelmsford with a third-wicket stand worth 126 from 76 balls, with Rodrigues smashing 69 off 40 and Bhatia 54 against the same number of deliveries.
We’ve become accustomed to Rodrigues’ fluid innings. Bhatia’s lengthy absence from the 50-over World Cup and this year’s WPL due to a knee injury sustained during a training camp and surgery last October left us unsure of what to anticipate. She was a member of India’s T20 World Cup team in 2024, however she missed no games before suffering a wrist injury at the WBBL.
“It felt really special and I’m very grateful,” Bhatia remarked about her Thursday innings. “I’ve been returning for a while, and the crew has made me feel extremely welcome. It’s been great to be back.
“It’s difficult when I’m injured, but I have support. “Those who undergo ACL surgery, the whole muscle of that leg goes away,” the statement reads. “I’m very grateful to all of the people who were behind me at that time and behind the scenes, a lot of work has gone on to return to the team.” Everything must be constructed from the ground up.
It was rather difficult to simply go through the rehabilitation procedure after the surgery, and there were days when nothing was happening and no progress was essentially visible. However, because of the support, I just kept going and continued showing up, and after months I could see the change. I was in contact with Jemi and the entire team, including the personnel and team management, and I am really appreciative of their help. Everything works out nicely in the end.
After the powerplay, India was 73 for 2 and appeared to be headed for a huge score thanks to Rodrigues and Bhatia. However, after both of them were dismissed in the 14th over—Bhatia was run out following a dangerous single, and Rodrigues was caught and bowled by Charlie Dean—England was able to keep the target under control, with only Deepti Sharma reaching double figures after that.
With just two weeks until the T20 World Cup begins, their ability to post an above-average score in those conditions and without Harmanpreet speaks to India’s depth, as does the international debut of fast bowler Nandani Sharma, who claimed 3 for 34, including two wickets in as many balls.
Before bowling Issy Wong with her slower ball, she dismissed Dani Gibson and Amy Jones, the only England batsman to put up much of a fight while batting out of position at No. 3 to score 67, her first T20I half-century since 2020. Both were caught in the deep by Shafali.
With 17 wickets for the Delhi Capitals at a marginally better average of 18.58 and economy rate of 8.31, Nandani, 24, shared the top spot with Sophie Devine in this year’s WPL. In just her second game of the competition, she scored a hat-trick while going 5 for 33 against the Gujarat Giants.
“Nandani, I think she bowled beautifully,” Bhatia remarked.
“She bowled well to her strength and took those wickets, which is remarkable in a first game. She also came back nicely with her slower ones, which is her strength.
“It’s encouraging to see that Nandani, a WPL graduate, has performed so well here. It’s great to see that she performed well today because we were all moved by her debut and her emotional reaction when she received the cap. It’s exciting times for Indian cricket since every player entering the starting lineup is contributing and making a statement.
India anticipates Harmanpreet’s return for Saturday’s second game in Bristol, which England must win to maintain the series.
After taking a sabbatical to give birth to her first child, Danni Wyatt-Hodge will be ready for selection to support the batting. Jones took advantage of Maia Bouchier’s absence from the World Cup roster to gain some crucial time at the crease prior to the competition.
“We wanted to give a bit of time to those girls who are going to bat for us in that middle top order in the World Cup,” stated Dean, the acting captain of England while Nat Sciver-Brunt battles to recover from injury in time for the tournament. “Not having a Nat in our batting line-up and in our team is a loss and just trying to work out where the other girls fit into that.” We firmly think that they can all complete the task at hand; we just need to make sure that the correct people are given the chance.”
