Indian star player Smriti Mandhana made history in the first Women’s T20I match against Sri Lanka on Sunday in Visakhapatnam. The left-handed opener reached a significant milestone and joined an exclusive group in women’s T20 international cricket.
Mandhana made history as the first Indian woman cricketer to exceed 4,000 runs in T20Is. This is a significant milestone for Indian cricket.
In total, she is merely the second female globally to achieve this milestone.
Faster Than Suzie Bates! Smriti Mandhana’s 4,000-Run T20I Record Stuns Cricket World
New Zealand icon Suzie Bates is the sole other player to achieve this, with a total of 4,716 runs in the format.
What makes Mandhana’s achievement even more remarkable is the rapidity with which she accomplished it. She achieved the 4,000-run milestone in only 3,227 balls, surpassing Suzie Bates, who required 3,675 balls to reach it.
This illustrates the consistency and aggressiveness Mandhana has demonstrated over the years in T20 cricket.
In the game versus Sri Lanka, Mandhana made 25 runs from 25 balls. She was out in the ninth over while pursuing a target of 122 runs.
Although her innings was brief, it sufficed for her to achieve the historic milestone.
This marked her first international outing since India’s remarkable victory in the ODI World Cup final last month, where they overcame South Africa to claim their first title.
In the earlier stages of the game, the Indian bowlers showcased a disciplined effort, limiting Sri Lanka to 121 runs while taking six wickets. The Sri Lankan batsmen found it difficult to capitalize on loose balls and could not establish solid partnerships.
Opener Vishmi Gunaratne scored the most runs for Sri Lanka, making 39 runs from 43 balls. Hasini Perera and Harshitha Samarawickrama also added totals of 20 and 21 respectively.
Sri Lanka skipper Chamari Athapaththu began assertively but was outdone by young fast bowler Kranti Gaud, providing India an early advantage.
India’s bowlers maintained their control during the middle overs, even with dew making it challenging to grip the ball.
Deepti Sharma delivered her overs efficiently, while newcomer Vaishnavi Sharma captivated everyone with a composed and steady performance, conceding minimal runs.