India’s batting superstar Smriti Mandhana has become the leading run-scorer in women’s international cricket after smashing a record-breaking 124 off 64 balls in the Women’s Asia Cup in Dubai. Mandhana overtook former India captain Mithali Raj, who held the previous record with 10,868 international runs, during her match-winning innings against Hong Kong on Thursday. The victory, which saw India post 193-5 before bowling out Hong Kong for 56 to secure a 137-run win, also sealed India’s place in the semifinals of the T20 tournament.
A Historic Milestone
The 30-year-old also became the leading century-maker in women’s international cricket, reaching 18 hundreds across formats and overtaking Australia’s Meg Lanning and South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt, who have 17 each. Mandhana, who made her India debut in 2013, previously became the first Indian woman to score international centuries in all three formats when she registered her maiden T20 international hundred last year. Her current tally includes two centuries in Tests, two in T20Is, and 14 in one-day internationals.
Player Reflections
- “It’s just the start,” the India vice-captain said after the game.
- “Until I was batting, I didn’t know what record, because I didn’t know what’s the exact runs,” Mandhana told Sportstar.
- “A very good day for Indian cricket, I would say,” she added, while praising Mithali Raj as a “legend and a role model.”
- Regarding the match, she noted: “They were disciplined in the powerplay, bowled really well and the energy they showed was something we’ll learn from.”
Mandhana’s knock featured 14 fours and seven sixes. She dedicated her achievement to her family, acknowledging that Hong Kong’s disciplined bowling made life difficult early on during the innings.
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