A fine bowling performance, after India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana hit a stroke-filled 124 off 64 balls, helped India thrash Hong Kong-China by 137 runs for their second win in a Group A match in the Women's T20 Asia Cup at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai on Thursday.
Mandhana's hundred, which also helped her become the leading run-scorer in women's international cricket, helped India post 193/5 after Hong Kong-China won the toss and elected to field first.
Chasing a massive total, Hong Kong-China were off to a poor start, losing their first wicket for 2 runs in the second over. They did not recover from that stumble and lost wickets at regular intervals, getting bowled out for 56 in 16.2 overs as the Indian bowlers produced a good effort.
All-rounder Deepti Sharma led the Indian bowling effort with 3 wickets for nine runs in three overs. Fellow spinner N. Shree Charani (2-16), Nandani Sharma (2-6) and Prema Rawat (2-12) claimed a brace of wickets each as the Indians remained strong even though they were defending a big score.
Only three Hong Kong batters -- skipper Natasha Miles (15), wicketkeeper-batter Yasmin Daswani (11) and Marina Lamplough (13) -- reached double figures as the ODI World Champions did not give the minnows many chances.
Earlier, opening the batting alongside Shafali Verma, Smriti Mandhana overcame a slow, low-paced surface in Dubai to register her second T20I century laced with 14 boundaries and seven sixes, making her the first Indian women’s batter to achieve this landmark.
In doing so, she surpassed former teammate Mithali Raj's international career tally of 10,868 runs, while also claiming her 18th international hundred across formats - the most centuries hit by a batter in women's international cricket and took her past Meg Lanning in the list.
For Hong Kong China, it was a tough outing as they struggled to nail their lengths and put pressure on the batters. India began cautiously by taking five runs from Iqra Sahar's opening over. But Smriti found her rhythm in the second over by sweeping wrist-spinner Kary Chan for the innings' first boundary, before Shafali Verma exploded in the sixth over off Marina Lamplough, hitting two sixes and two fours in a 22-run over to push India to 60/0 at the end of the powerplay.
The 50-run opening stand, their 29th fifty-plus stand in T20Is, ended in the eighth over when Shafali miscued a full toss from off-spinner Ruchitha Venkatesh to fall for 28. Pratika Rawal (10) fell in the 13th over by miscuing Joyleen Kaur to point.
Smriti, however, accelerated through the back end of the innings. She reached her half-century off 41 balls with a six over deep backward square leg off Iqra in the 11th over. Adapting to the lack of pace on the pitch, she relied on backfoot placement and lofted shots, with the standout being advancing down the track to hit three consecutive sixes off Ruchitha in the 18th over.
Mandhana reached her landmark century by cutting Marina through backward point in the 17th over to reach her century off 58 balls. Her 124 off 64 balls, featuring 14 fours and seven sixes, also marked the highest individual score in Women's T20 Asia Cup history, eclipsing Chamari Athapaththu's 119 not out against Malaysia in 2024.
Her milestone-laden knock ended on the penultimate ball of the innings when she was run out after a mid-pitch mix-up with Bharti Fulmali. Richa Ghosh (11) and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (10) made brief contributions as India set Hong Kong a target of 194, though India's middle order making only 34 runs means that department is still a worrisome point.
Brief scores:
India 193/5 in 20 overs (Smriti Mandhana 124, Shafali Verma 28; Marina Lamplough 2-46, Joyleen Kaur 1-12) beat Hong Kong-China 56 all out in 16.2 overs (Natasha Miles 15, Deepti Sharma 3-9, Nandani Sharma 2-6, Shree Charani 2-16, Prema Rawat 2-12) by 137 runs
Picture Courtesy: X/ ICC
