Grace Harris Injury Forces Withdrawal from Women's Cricket World Cup; Heather Graham Named Replacement

Australia all-rounder Grace Harris's agonising wait for ODI World Cup bow continues as a calf strain has ruled her out of the upcoming 50-over event in India and Sri Lanka. Harris suffered her injury in the third ODI against India on Saturday, which incidentally was her first game back in the format since March 2024.

Harris will now head back home for recovery and rehabilitation in the lead-up to the Women's Big Bash League starting on November 9. Australia have named Heather Graham as Harris's replacement, who will join Australia in India after Western Australia's first two matches in the Women's National Cricket League on Wednesday and Thursday (September 24 and 25).

Harris was part of the ODI World Cup in 2022 but didn't feature in a single game. Though she didn't feature regularly in the ODI format, she forced her way back in for the 2025 iteration of the tournament on the back of an impressive stint in English domestic cricket.

She also starred for Surrey in the T20 Blast with 338 runs in 12 innings at a strike rate of 156, including a 63* (33) in the final. She seamlessly carried that form to the Women's Hundred, smashing 214 runs at a strike rate of 174 for London Spirit.

She found a place in Australia's XI for the third ODI after Annabel Sutherland was ruled out of the fixture with hip soreness.

After the completion of the ODI series against India, the Australia squad have a four-day break in Bengaluru this week before going up against England in a warm-up game next Sunday.