Mithali Raj Dinesh Karthik Smriti Mandhana. Image Credits: AFP
Smriti Mandhana, India women’s team vice-captain, had a gala day in the ongoing ACC Women’s Asia Cup 2026 tournament. India faced off against Hong Kong Women at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai and registered a one-sided win.
Smriti Mandhana was the reason why India posted 193/5 in 20 overs thanks to her century, when the next best score was Shafali Verma’s 28 in 17 balls. However, it was Mandhana, who smashed her second century in T20Is and also became the first Indian to score a century in the Women's Asia Cup.
Mithali Raj wishes Smriti Mandhana after she breaks her world record for most runs
Smriti Mandhana was in form of her life, scoring 124 runs in 64 balls. She hit 14 fours and 7 sixes in her knock. Mandhana has now scored her 18th century for the Indian cricket team throughout her international career.
But this was not the only significant record Mandhana achieved, breaking the record of Meg Lanning, but she also went past India's great Mithali Raj’s record for most runs in international cricket – 10868. Mandhana, with her knock of 124 runs, is now the highest run-getter in international women’s cricket, with 10880 runs to her name.
She received rich praise from India captain Mithali Raj, who posted on X: “Well deserved, @mandhana_smriti! I have watched you grow from a young player into one of the finest batters India has produced.”
Smriti Mandhana now has the most runs in international women’s cricket
Mandhana was on the verge of surpassing the former India captain's record prior to the game against Hong Kong. The century had sufficient strength to give the Indian women's cricket team opener an exquisite record, even though the mark was difficult to reach. In women's international cricket, Mandhana currently has the most runs.
Raj was at the top of the chart with 10,868 runs, but Mandhana now has 10,880. Since the active Indian batter has not yet made much progress with the Women in Blue, the gap between Mandhana and Raj's runs will widen in the near future.
Most runs in women's international cricket:
10880 - Smriti Mandhana
10868 - Mithali Raj
10740 - Suzie Bates
10273 - Charlotte Edwards
10007 - Stafanie Taylor
Smriti Mandhana registers the highest individual score in the Women's T20 Asia Cup
Smriti Mandhana was brutal on the Hong Kong bowlers, and despite wickets, they fell at the other end. She hammered 7 sixes and 14 fours in 64 balls, scoring 124 runs before her dismissal off a full toss. Her 124 became the highest individual score by a batter in the history of the ACC Women’s Asia Cup tournament.
Prior to Mandhana's innings, Chamari Athapaththu of Sri Lanka held the record with an undefeated 119-run innings against Malaysia in 2024. Two other Indian cricket players, Mithali Raj and Shafali Verma, are among the top five batters in the Women's T20 Asia Cup for their highest individual scores.
Highest individual scores in the Women's T20 Asia Cup:
124 - Smriti Mandhana (India Women's) vs Hong Kong Women's, Dubai, 2026
119* - Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka Women's) vs Malaysia Women's, Dambulla, 2024
97* - Mithali Raj (India Women's) vs Malaysia Women's, Kuala Lumpur, 2018
81 - Harshitha Samarawickrama (Sri Lanka Women's) vs Thailand Women's, Sylhet, 2022
81 - Shafali Verma (India Women's) vs Nepal Women's, Dambulla, 2024
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