Deandra Dottin "deeply disappointed" by "bewildering reasoning" for her omission from Gujarat Giants in WPL 2023

Former West Indies all-rounder Deandra Dottin has expressed disillusionment over her exclusion from the WPL 2023.

Dottin was bought by Adani Sportsline-owned Gujarat Giants for ₹60 lakhs (US$ 73,000 approximately) in the WPL 2023 auction last month.

On the eve of the first match of the inaugural WPL season between the Gujarat Giants and Mumbai Indians, Australian all-rounder Kim Garth replaced Deandra Dottin in the Giants' 18-member squad.

Reports had suggested that the West Indies player was recovering from a medical situation. Just hours before the tournament opener, Dottin clarified that she was fit.

A day after suffering a 143-run defeat by the Mumbai Indians, the Giants issued a statement stating that they didn't obtain medical clearance from the all-rounder.

Nearly a fortnight after the commencement of WPL 2023, the 31-year-old issued a detailed statement. She described the series of events leading up to her omission from the event.

"I remain deeply disappointed by what can only, plausibly, be described as bewildering reasoning for my omission from the tournament."

Dottin admitted that she went through abdominal pain along with swelling. The player was asked to rest until February 13, following her tests by medical experts.

"I would like to make it clear that I had experienced minor abdominal pain and swelling for which I had sought treatment in December 2022," Dottin mentioned.

Continuing her narration of events, Deandra Dottin said that she was cleared by medical professionals to resume training on February 14. But she experienced soreness on the very first day of training, something she had already anticipated.

"I was transparent about this in correspondence with Gujarat Giants' physiotherapist. However, this was misconstrued and later conveyed to the members of the franchise's management team as me 'Experiencing abdominal pain post-session', which was not what I had indicated."

Deandra Dottin claims to be replaced despite submitting medical reports

Deandra Dottin

The franchise asked the player to get herself assessed in Canada after she got the medical clearance on February 20. Just less than a week later, she was required to submit her fitness reports with the latest scans.

The West Indian claims that despite submitting the report on February 25, a day before the deadline date, she was asked to produce a new scan by March 1. Finally, according to Deandra Dottin, she received a shocking email that she would be replaced in the first season of the WPL.

Gujarat Giants are almost out of the qualification race as they languish at the bottom of the points table with just two wins in seven games and a net run-rate (NRR) of -2.511.

The Sneh Rana-led team will play its final fixture of WPL 2023 against UP Warriorz on Monday (March 20) at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai.