India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana starred with the bat on Sunday (June 16) to propel the team to a challenging total in the first of the three-match ODI series against South Africa.
India’s decision to bat first at Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium initially backfired as they got off to a disastrous start. Players like Shafali Verma (7), Hemalatha (12), captain Harmanpreet Kaur (10), Jemimah Rodrigues (17) and Richa Ghosh (3) failed to get going with the bat as India were reeling at 99 for 5 in the 22nd finished.
However, Smriti Mandhana stood tall at one end and scored an impressive century to take India to 265 for 8 in the allotted 50 overs. He reached his half-century in 61 balls before scoring his sixth ODI century and first at home in 116 balls. Finally, Masabata Klaas dismissed her in the 47th over.
Before leaving, Smriti Mandhana scored 117 runs off 127 balls with the help of 12 fours and a six. Her brilliant knock also helped her create history as she now holds the record for highest score by an Indian woman in ODIs at home. The record was previously held by the legendary Mithali Raj for her 109-run knock against the West Indies back in 2011.
Smriti Mandhana is delighted with the first century at home:
Speaking at the end of India’s innings, Smriti Mandhana expressed her joy at finally scoring her first ODI century at home. The opener also spoke about the batting surface where most of her teammates failed to get going, saying that although the pitch had two paces, it was not a bad pitch to bat on.
“I knew I had never scored a century in India, but it didn’t come to mind when I was batting. I am very happy that I got a good score. It was a small two-pacer wicket, not a bad wicket to bat on, a ball rare was staying low, another one was taking off, it’s not a bad wicket to bat on and that’s why I mentioned that we have to go out and bowl well,” said Smriti Mandhana.
