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Who Is Kanika Ahuja’s Replacement Shraddha Pokharkar?

Shraddha Pokharkar is set to replace Kanika Ahuja for Woman’s Premier League (WPL) 2024. The tournament starts on February 23, 2024. However, Royal Challengers Bangalore faced their first setback before the tournament even started. Kanika Ahuja was ruled out of WPL 2024 with an injury. Shraddha Pokharkar has replaced her.

Shraddha put in her name for the WPL 2024 auctions but was not selected by any team. She went unsold in the auctions but now has a chance to show the world what she is worth. She has been chosen as the replacement for Royal Challengers Bangalore star Kanika Ahuja.

Who Is Shraddha Pokharkar?

Shraddha Pokharkar is the all-rounder who will replace Kanika Ahuja in WPL 2024 for Royal Challengers Bangalore. Kanika Ahuja was sold for ₹35 Lakh in the first-ever edition of the WPL last year. She was retained by Royal Challengers Bangalore but had to withdraw from WPL 2024 due to injury. She was replaced by Shraddha Pokharkar at a reserve price of ₹10 Lakh.

The Indian all-rounder has been a part of Royal Challengers Bangalore already. She was a part of their net bowlers for the Women’s Premier League 2023. Although she did not play for the team, she has already been with the players and knows many of them and the staff. This will make it easier for her to settle in with her teammates in such a short period.

🔊 THIS JUST IN 🔊

We welcome left-arm pacer Shradda Pokharkhar to our #ClassOf2024.

She replaces Kanika Ahuja, who has been ruled out of #WPL2024 due to a stress fracture. 🔄

Shradda's impressive domestic performances and experience with the 🇮🇳 senior side as a net bowler… pic.twitter.com/AZk0h9T5xH

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) February 19, 2024

Pokharkar has been a net bowler not only for Royal Challengers Bangalore but also for the Indian team. She was a net bowler for the Indian squad when Australia toured India for a five-match T20I series in December 2022. This has helped her gain some valuable experience, which she can showcase in front of her teammates from her new WPL team.

Shraddha Pokharkar has played on multiple occasions with Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Smriti Mandhana. Pokharkar played with her while they both represented the Trailblazers in the Women’s T20 Challenge Trophy. They also played together while representing Maharashtra in the Senior Women’s T20 League. Pokharkar, who will be playing under the captaincy of Smriti Mandhana at RCB, has praised Mandhana’s ability to lead back in 2022. Pokharkar said:

“The fact that Smriti led and gave the team a lot of confidence. She allowed each and every player to express themselves on the field and encouraged us to play fearless cricket. I learned many things from her including field settings, strategies, etc. We enjoyed each other’s company and didn’t even realize that we had reached the finals. Smriti kept the team environment very relaxed.”

Team Blue members at the Maharashtra Premier League.

Shivali Shinde, Smriti Mandhana and Shraddha Pokharkar. #CricketTwitter pic.twitter.com/ImKTu7CvZ8

— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) June 26, 2023

The Indian all-rounder’s favourite performance to date is the one against Baroda in the 2019-20 Senior Women’s One-Day Trophy. She completed her 10 overs, picking up three wickets and conceding just 38 runs in the process. She also bowled three maiden overs in this game. While speaking about this game, Pokharkar said:

“My favorite performance so far has been the one that came against Baroda in Pune during the senior women’s one-day tournament in 2019-20. It was just my second match for the Maharashtra senior team. I opened the bowling and picked up 3-38 in 10 overs, including two maidens. Yastika Bhatia was one of the three scalps that I took that day.”

Pokharkar will be raring to debut in the Women’s Premier League now that she is a part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore team. She has a set favourite performance coming into this tournament but will surely try to add a few more memorable performances during the 2024 Women’s Premier League.

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Who Is Kanika Ahuja?

Credit: The Quint

Kanika Ahuja will be a big miss for Royal Challengers Bangalore in WPL 2024. While the team had an abysmal season last year, Ahuja was one player who tried her best to make the team win every game she played. She played seven of the eight matches last season, scoring 98 runs and picking up two wickets.

The Royal Challengers Bangalore star managed to impress both her fellow teammates and the staff and was, therefore, retained by the team. An injury, however, made it impossible for her to feature in the 2nd edition of the Women’s Premier League. Kanika Ahuja will be a big miss for Royal Challengers Bangalore, who hope that they have found a good replacement in Shraddha Pokharkar.

For more news and updates on the Women’s Premier League, keep reading GutshotMagazine.com. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Telegram.

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