Warwickshire have signed India top-order batter Pratika Rawal for the rest of the 2026 season, adding a World Cup winner to their ranks as the One-Day Cup approaches its business end.

Rawal, 25, is set to make her first appearance for the Bears when the 50-over competition resumes on 19 August. Her arrival gives Warwickshire a proven international top-order batter at a point in the campaign where every result matters — they have won five and lost five, with one no result, from their 11 group games so far. That mid-table record leaves them needing a strong finish to keep knockout qualification alive.

The numbers Rawal brings are serious. In 26 One-Day International innings for India, she averages more than 47, with two hundreds and eight half-centuries. ODIs are the 50-over format, the same as the One-Day Cup she is entering. She was part of the India squad that won the 2025 Women's Cricket World Cup, though she missed the final against South Africa through injury.

That injury record is the one caveat. Rawal was also ruled out of India's Test match — the multi-day format — against England at Lord's after picking up an injury while playing for India A against England A in Taunton. Before that setback, she had shown she could handle red-ball cricket too, scoring 63 in her second innings on Test debut against Australia in Perth in March.

Warwickshire head coach Ali Maiden called the signing "fantastic" and said Rawal would strengthen the line-up as the Bears look to finish the season positively (BBC Sport).

For Warwickshire fans, Rawal's arrival is a statement of intent for the closing weeks. A batter who builds innings — two hundreds in 26 ODI knocks tells you she can stay at the crease — is exactly what a side sitting at five wins and five losses needs. If she stays fit, the Bears have added a player who has performed on the biggest stage India's women's cricket has to offer.

For Rawal herself, it is a chance to get back on the field after a frustrating run of injuries. The One-Day Cup resumption on 19 August will be her first competitive cricket since that India A fixture in Taunton.