Heather Knight pulls out of WPL 2024, RCB name Nadine de Klerk as replacement
English captain and Royal Challengers Bangalore all-rounder Heather Knight has pulled out of the Women's Premier League (WPL) 2024 season. The franchise has announced South African all-rounder Nadine de Klerk as the replacement.
Knight becomes the second English player to pull out of the tournament after Lauren Bell, who pulled out of the UP Warriorz to focus on England's bilateral series against New Zealand. The series is likely to clash with the end of the WPL season.
While the WPL will be played between February 23 and March 17, the five-match T20I series between England and New Zealand will commence on the 19 in Dunedin.
This means that the players who will be part of the final would have had to miss the first game of the series. According to a report in ESPNcricinfo, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) gave the players the ultimatum to choose one, saying that picking the WPL would mean non-selection for the New Zealand bilaterals.
Knight, being captain, was always expected to choose international duty above the T20 tournament. Meanwhile, Bell said in an Instagram post that her priority was to prepare for the series as well. Warriorz brought in Sri Lankan legend Chamari Athapaththu to replace her on Friday.
Apart from them, Alice Capsey (Delhi Capitals), Issy Wong, Nat Sciver-Brunt (Mumbai Indians), Kate Cross (Royal Challengers Bangalore) and Sophie Ecclestone and Danni Wyatt (UP Warriorz) are also part of the WPL.
Nadine de Klerk could prove to be a great replacement for Heather Knight for RCB
Nadine de Klerk, 24, is one of the most promising talents in international cricket. She was part of the ICC women's ODI team of the year for 2023. The right-hander is an excellent pace bowler with 35 wickets from 46 T20Is at an average of 22.91 and hits the ball hard from the lower order: she has 419 runs at a strike rate of 98.35.
Knight, though experienced, struggled for form in the Women's Big Bash League last year. de Klerk might just be the next big thing for RCB in the WPL.