‘Two Indians At The Top’: Smriti Mandhana On Overtaking Mithali Raj’s Record

Smriti Mandhana etched her name into the history books with a breathtaking century against Hong Kong, becoming the leading run-scorer in women’s international cricket in the process.

The India opener smashed 124 off 64 balls in the Women’s Asia Cup on Thursday, surpassing Mithali Raj’s previous record of 10,868 international runs. Mandhana’s innings also made her the first Indian woman to score two T20I centuries.

The achievement carried added significance for Mandhana, who grew up watching Mithali and regarded the former India captain as one of her biggest cricketing inspirations.

“Mithali-di has been such a legend and a role model, and we've all grown up watching her bat. So, to go past her in the tally of runs, I definitely never imagined to do that. But happy that there are two Indians at the top two,” Mandhana said in a video shared by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on social media.

What made the milestone even more remarkable was that Mandhana was unaware she was approaching the record during her innings. She did not know Mithali’s exact international tally and only learned about the significance of her knock afterwards.

“Till I was batting, I didn't know what record it was because I didn't know the exact runs or all of that. But yeah, looking back, one of a very good day for Indian cricket, I would say,” she said.

Mandhana’s innings was packed with power, as she struck 14 fours and seven sixes to register the highest individual score in Women’s T20 Asia Cup history. Her 18th international century also saw her move past Australia great Meg Lanning and South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt, who had both scored 17 centuries.

For Mandhana, overtaking Lanning and Mithali had a special connection to the players she admired while developing her own game.

“Two of the legends of women's cricket -- Meg Lanning and Mithali Raj -- genuinely, these are the two people whom I have grown up watching a lot. I've tried to take a lot of things from them as batters.”

“Really happy that I could go past them in whatever ways, but again, it's just a stat, I would say.”

Mandhana’s assault helped India post 193/5 before their bowlers completed the job in emphatic fashion. Hong Kong were dismissed for just 56 in 16.2 overs, giving India a massive 137-run win at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

The victory also confirmed India’s qualification for the Women’s Asia Cup semi-finals, making them the first team to book a place in the knockout stage.

Despite the dominant result, Mandhana backed India’s middle order after some inconsistent performances earlier in the tournament. She described the unit as “world-class” and said she was confident the batters would find their rhythm and adjust to the conditions.

Mandhana also spoke about the demanding conditions in Dubai, where the combination of heat and humidity made her lengthy stay at the crease physically taxing. She described the environment as a “steam box”.

India will now take on Pakistan in their final group-stage game on September 5. With their semi-final berth already secured, the focus will be on finishing the league phase strongly before the knockout stages.