Pratika Rawal replaces Jemimah (Image: IANS)

Top-order batter Pratika Rawal has been included in India’s women’s cricket squad for the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, as a replacement for injured Jemimah Rodrigues.Jemimah continues to recover from a hamstring injury she suffered while playing for Southern Brave in The Hundred on August 3. The injury had already ruled her out of the ongoing Women’s Asia Cup in Dubai and the Asian Games.

Rawal gets Asian Games call-up

Rawal was initially named as Jemimah’s replacement only for the Asia Cup, with no official word at the time on who would take her place in the Asian Games squad. However, a BCCI source confirmed on Wednesday that Rawal’s name was already included in the 15-member squad submitted for the Asian Games, meaning she will travel to Japan as Jemimah’s replacement.The 17-year-old made her T20I debut during the ongoing Asia Cup and has been used at No. 3 by the Indian team management. She has scored 22, 10 and 4 in her three league-stage appearances so far.

A long road back for Rawal

Rawal’s return to international cricket came after a lengthy injury layoff. She had not played competitive T20 cricket since November 2024 before her Asia Cup call-up and was also forced to miss the 2026 Women’s Premier League after an ankle injury suffered during the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup. She had been preparing to join Warwickshire for the One Day Cup in England when the India call came. UP Warriorz had bought her for Rs 50 lakh at the WPL auction last year, but she could not feature in the 2026 season.

India head to Japan as defending champions

India will enter the women’s cricket competition at the Asian Games as defending champions after beating Sri Lanka by 19 runs in the final of the previous edition in Hangzhou. The eight-team competition is scheduled to run from September 17 to 22, with India joined by Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia and China.India’s Asian Games squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Bharti Fulmali, Richa Ghosh (WK), G Kamalini (WK), Deepti Sharma, Radha Yadav, Prema Rawat, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud, Renuka Singh, N Sree Charani and Nandni Sharma.