Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma produced a stunning opening act as India Women posted a mammoth 221 for 2 against Sri Lanka in the fourth T20I of the five-match series at the Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram, on Sunday night. It was India’s highest-ever total in Women’s T20 Internationals, built on a record-breaking partnership, fluent strokeplay and a blistering finish.
The Indian openers lit up the show from ball one, never allowing the Sri Lankan bowlers to settle. They punished every loose delivery with a range of breathtaking strokes and used their feet superbly against the spinners — a pattern that has defined the series. After modest returns in the first three games, Mandhana found her rhythm to notch up a classy half-century, while Shafali continued her red-hot form by registering her third consecutive fifty.
The pair stitched together a mammoth 162-run opening stand, the highest for any wicket for India in Women’s T20 Internationals. Mandhana anchored the innings with a fluent 80 off 48 balls, while Shafali matched her intensity with a scintillating 79 off 46 deliveries, completely dominating the attack through the powerplay and middle overs.
The innings also saw Mandhana achieve a significant personal milestone. The left-hander surpassed Mithali Raj to become the fastest batter to reach 10,000 international runs in women’s cricket, achieving the landmark in her 280th innings, 11 fewer than Mithali.
Although neither opener went on to convert their starts into centuries, India finished the innings in emphatic fashion thanks to Richa Ghosh. The wicketkeeper-batter provided the finishing flourish with a blistering 40 off just 16 balls, powering India past the 220 mark and leaving Sri Lanka with a daunting target.
Earlier, Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu won the toss and elected to bowl, a decision that proved costly as India’s batters produced a performance of complete authority from start to finish.
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