Tayla Vlaeminck to miss WBBL as her horror run with injury continues following shoulder surgery

Australia women’s pacer Tayla Vlaeminck’s horrid run with injury continues as she is set to undergo surgery for her shoulder. The surgery ruled her out of contention for selection in her second straight WBBL (Women’s Big Bash League) season, which is set to begin in a few months. 

It was confirmed by Cricket Australia that Vlaeminck will be undergoing surgery for her left shoulder after she dislocated it when playing for Australia A in July. It is safe to say that the past few years have been quite unlucky for the 24-year-old. She will be missing another WBBL season for Melbourne Renegades, whom she joined in 2022.

Vlaeminck’s injuries started after a stress fracture in the navicular bone in her right foot, which put her into rehab for quite some time. The injury saw her miss the 2020 T20 World Cup, and a re-emergence of the injury led her to be sidelined and miss the 2022 ODI World Cup, the 2022 Commonwealth Games, last season's WBBL, and the 2023 T20 World Cup in South Africa.

Ever since her debut in the WBBL in 2018, Vlaeminck has only played 33 matches, and with her shoulder surgery, she would have missed three entire seasons due to injury by the time 2024 arrives. 

We're disappointed for Tayla: Shawn Flegler

Seeing Vlaeminck’s struggle with injuries, Cricket Australia’s head of performance for women’s cricket, Shawn Flegler, came forward to give his take on the situation. Opining that they are disappointed for Tayla, he also stated that there is no specific timeframe for her return from injury and that she will be unavailable for Australia’s assignments in October. 

"We're disappointed for Tayla, she has shown incredible resilience and perseverance throughout injury setbacks over the past few years and worked hard to earn her spot on the Australia A tour," Flegler was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. 

"We will continue to work collaboratively with Cricket Victoria's high-performance staff to support Tayla over the course of her rehabilitation," he added.