Why Pratika Rawal is Not Opening Toady in IND-W vs AUS-W One-Off Test?

The ongoing one-off Test match between India women and Australia women is played at the W.A.C.A, Perth, from March 6 to 10. The players are excited to be a part of the match at one of the best cricket stadiums in the world. After winning the toss, Australia skipper Alyssa Healy invited the Indian women's team to bat first.

When the openers, Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana, walked out to the middle, the fans were stunned after seeing Pratika Rawal not opening batting for Indian side.

Why Pratika Rawal is Not Opening Today Against Australia Women?

The Indian women's team have Mandhana and Shafali as openers for the AUS-W vs IND-W One-Off Test. Both have played quite a number of matches together as well. Meanwhile, Pratika is making her debut in red-ball cricket in this match. She is an incredible batter and performed brilliantly in the ODI World Cup 2025 before getting injured.

She made her Test debut in Perth, which is a dream of many players. In this match, Pratika Rawal batting position is number 3. This is an important clash for the Women in Blue, and they will try to make the most out of the opportunity. They have played some outstanding knocks in the T20I series, but failed to impress in the ODIs.

Pratika Rawal was also part of the ODI series, where she scored a duck in the first game but went on to score 52 in the second, followed by a 27 in the third. She batted well throughout the series and handed her Test debut. Most of the players in the team are young and have limited experience across formats.

Pratika Rawal Shows Promise in AUS-W vs IND-W One-off Test

In the ongoing one-off Test match, Pratika Rawal batted at the No. 3 position, where she scored just 18 runs. It was her debut game, and she faced 43 balls, hitting three boundaries before falling prey to the outstanding bowling of Annabel Sutherland. She got out while attempting to play a short delivery outside the off stump.

The ball took a thick edge and flew towards the gully region, where Lucy Hamilton took a clean catch. It was definitely not the kind of debut she would have imagined. However, the silver lining is the number of deliveries she faced, which should give her confidence to perform better in the 2nd innings.