Indian batsman Smriti Mandhana won the hearts of many with her gesture after the match against Pakistan in the ongoing Women’s Asian Cup 2024. The team’s vice-captain gifted a mobile phone to the disabled fan who came to the stadium to watch the match.
Smriti Mandhana was one of the major factors that led India to win the match against Pakistan in the Asia Cup and start the tournament on a good note. The opening batsman played a solid innings for the team and ensured that her team won the match quite comfortably to start the campaign.
India were asked to take the field first and they were on top of their game with the ball. Deepti Sharma was the key architect for her team with the ball as she took three wickets while Renuka Singh, Pooja Vastrakar and Shreyanka Patil got two wickets each.
Thanks to a collective effort with the ball, India Women defeated Pakistan by 108 runs. Sidra Ameen (25) and Fatima Sana (22*) played vital innings for their team. Their effort ensured Pakistan Women crossed the 100-run mark at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium in Dambulla.
With the bat, it was Smriti Mandhana who ensured that her team got off to a flying start. The opening batsman, along with Shafali Verma (40), added 85 runs for the opening duo before others chipped in and sealed the game for her team to win the game by 7 wickets in hand.
Smriti Mandhana finished with an innings of 45 runs off 31 balls. The opening batsman had a strike rate of over 145 and hit 9 fours in her innings. She continued her golden touch with the bat as India Women chased down the target in 15 overs to win their first game of the tournament.
While her innings with the bat were exceptional, Smriti Mandhana also made headlines for her post-match antics. The opening batsman walked up to a special fan and gifted her a mobile phone. The video of the incident went viral and here is the clip:
Adeesha Herath’s love for cricket took her to the stadium, despite all the challenges. The highlight of her day? A surprise meet-and-greet with her favourite cricketer, Smriti Mandhana, who gave her a mobile phone as a token of appreciation 🥺
… pic.twitter.com/iqgL2RNE9v
— Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) July 20, 2024
We hope to get off to a good start, so credit goes to Smriti and Shafali – Harmanpreet Kaur
Indian women’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur spoke about the win over Pakistan women’s team. She thanked the entire team for their efforts and also praised Smriti Mandhana for the good start she gave. Speaking to the commentators after the match, she explained:
“Our bowlers and openers did it. The first match is always a pressure match but we handled it well. Our entire unit played well. When we are bowling, we talk about early breakthroughs and in batting, we look to start well, so credit goes to Smriti and Shafali. We played fearless cricket, the way we played today and we are very happy with the way we played. My knee is fine.”
The Indian women’s team will be seen back in action when they take on the United Arab Emirates on Sunday (July 21).