No words can describe how I felt - Shreyanka Patil on RCB retention

Less than a year ago, a shin injury kept Shreyanka Patil from joining Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their title defense in the Women's Premier League. After suffering the injury during the Women's T20 World Cup in October 2024, she'd already spent a few months on the sidelines but was due to spend a little more. 'Little' was her anticipation, but much to her dismay, it snowballed even further.

"I thought it was just like a one-off injury where I recovered in just like a couple of months, maybe two, three months," Patil said on Wednesday. "But then I didn't really see myself being there [CoE] for more than a year. It almost took me like 13 to 14 months to get out of COE, back on the field playing cricket. That's what I love to do. But unfortunately, the shin splints again reoccurred and then I had to go through the procedure all over again,"

After sitting out of the WPL, Patil failed to recover fully for the tri-series in Sri Lanka, also involving South Africa, in April-May. In June-July, she missed the tour of England. Added to this list was also the home World Cup, missing which, she said, 'hurt a lot'. "Once I started missing tournaments back to back, and missing out on WPL, that was a big blow for me. Missing the World Cup hurt a lot. As a cricketer, you always want to lift that trophy."

Spending time in BCCI's Centre of Excellence (CoE) wasn't easy for Patil, specially when so much of cricket was passing her by while she nursed injuries. "I wasn't talking to anyone at the start. I locked myself in a room for two or three months," she said. "That wasn't me. I'm usually very bubbly. But talking to people made me realise I wasn't alone."

But speaking to Jasprit Bumrah, who also spent time at the CoE, assuaged some of her worries. "I had so many questions [for Bumrah]," Shreyanka said. "About bowling under pressure, about practising yorkers. Even though he's a fast bowler and I'm a spinner, I bowl at the death too. He told me 'this is okay, everyone goes through it.' He said I'm facing it at a young age, so 'don't fight it. Just be in it.'"

Eventually, it is RCB who offer her the route back to competitive cricket action. Months of inactivity did not deter the franchise from showing faith in their all-rounder as they included her as one of the four retentions.

"No words can describe how I felt," Shreyanka said of being one of the retentions. "Someone who hasn't played for 13 or 14 months, and they still trust you and say, 'We'll back you because your skill is up there'...it gives so much confidence. I was overthinking before that. 'What if I'm not retained, which team will I play for?' All those thoughts were there. After the call, I rang Arjun [Dev, her personal coach] sir and just started crying. I didn't even know what I was feeling. It was just so much love and belief."

Patil took the field after nearly a year's gap in the Women's Caribbean Premier League last September and came through unscathed as far as relapses were concerned. Come January 9, she will be out in RCB colours in the WPL tournament opener against MI, in the hope to kick-start a phase that leaves her injury-ridden days well behind her.