Smriti Mandhana Surpasses England And New Zealand Greats In Elite ODI List

Smriti Mandhana [Source: X.com]

Indian women’s star Smriti Mandhana delivered an impressive performance in the first ODI of the three-match series against Australia. The IND-W vs AUS-W match took place at Allan Border Field in Brisbane on Tuesday, February 24.

India Women won the toss and decided to bat first. Smriti Mandhana opened the innings along with Pratika Rawal. However, India suffered an early setback when Pratika was dismissed for zero runs after facing just two balls in the second ball of the first over.

Smriti Mandhana sets new benchmark

Despite this early loss, Mandhana remained calm and continued to play confidently. Soon after, India faced more trouble. Shafali Verma was dismissed for just 4 runs off 17 balls, with Australian bowler Darcie Brown taking her wicket.

Following that, Jemimah Rodrigues was also sent back to the pavilion after scoring only 8 runs. As a result, India kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Nevertheless, Mandhana stood firm at one end and kept building the innings steadily.

In the middle overs, Mandhana formed an important 48-run partnership with captain Harmanpreet Kaur. This partnership helped India stabilize after the early setbacks. Mandhana played with patience and control, carefully choosing her shots while keeping the scoreboard moving. Eventually, she scored 58 runs off 68 balls, including 7 fours.

However, her innings came to an end when Australian all-rounder Tahlia McGrath dismissed her. McGrath bowled a full-length delivery on the leg stump line.

Mandhana attempted a sweep shot but ended up getting a top edge. The ball went high into the air, and the fielder at deep backward square ran in to complete a good catch. Although her innings ended there, Mandhana had already played a valuable knock for her team.

Importantly, during this innings, Smriti Mandhana achieved a significant milestone. She became the second-highest batter in terms of scoring 50-plus runs against Australia in Women’s ODIs. This is a remarkable achievement considering Australia’s strong bowling attack.

Players with the most 50+ scores against Australia in Women’s ODIs:

14 – Debbie Hockley (New Zealand)
11 – Smriti Mandhana (India)
10 – Charlotte Edwards (England), Suzie Bates (New Zealand)

Therefore, Mandhana has now gone past famous cricketers from England and New Zealand.

Smriti Mandhana’s strong form continues

Moreover, Mandhana’s excellent form was not limited to this ODI match. Before the ODI series, India Women played a three-match T20I series. In that series as well, Mandhana performed brilliantly. She scored 129 runs in three innings at an impressive strike rate of 134.38.

At the time of writing, India are trying to set a challenging target for the Australian Women. Harmanpreet Kaur and Richa Ghosh are at the crease. Notably, Harmanpreet is steadily building her innings and is currently on 32 runs, moving closer to her half-century. Richa Ghosh joined her after Deepti Sharma was dismissed for just 2 runs.