India Vs England, 1st Women's T20I: Smriti Mandhana Cracks Maiden Hundred In Format Off Just 51 Balls

Leading the Indian women's cricket team from the front in the absence of the injured Harmanpreet Kaur, batting mainstay Smriti Mandhana smashed a 51-ball century to take the visitors to a really strong position against England in the opening T20I at Nottingham on Saturday (June 28, 2025). The hundred was Mandhana's first in T20 internationals.

The stand-in skipper got to the landmark with consecutive boundaries off Lauren Bell, hitting three sixes and 14 fours along the way. Mandhana's blazing knock meant that the Indian women notched up a towering 210-run total, which is their second highest in the format after a tally of 217/4 against West Indies at the DY Patil Stadium (Navi Mumbai) in December 2024.

The ton was just the second from an Indian woman in T20Is, after Kaur’s 49-ball century against New Zealand at Providence during the Women’s T20 World Cup 2018. It also made Mandhana the first Indian and fifth batter overall to score hundreds in all three women's internationals formats. Heather Knight, Tammy Beaumont, Laura Wolvaardt and Beth Mooney are the only other players to have achieved the feat.

Mandhana ended up with 112 runs off 62 balls, making it the highest individual score for India in women's T20Is, surpassing Kaur's 103. The elegant southpaw was aggression and confidence personified from the word go and made up for the struggles of her opening partner Shafali Verma (20, 22 balls).

She easily went past 87, her previous best in T20Is, and touched the three-figure mark for the first time in her career that has 31 fifties. Mandhana was eventually dismissed by Sophie Ecclestone, but by then had taken India past the 200-run mark.