With a strong 112 off just 62 balls in India’s 97-run victory over England in the first game of the five-match series, Smriti Mandhana finally put an end to her lengthy T20I century drought. Following the match, the Indian captain disclosed that teammate Radha Yadav had a motivational talk with him that resulted in the remarkable century.
Smriti Mandhana had frequently gone out in the 70s and 80s for more than ten years. She had reached the fifty-run barrier seven times in her last twelve T20I innings, but she was never able to convert it into a century. After the game, Smriti Mandhana gave Radha credit for providing her with the challenge that resulted in her historic moment.
It was three days ago when Radha Yadav and I were talking. Sometimes I get pretty rough treatment from these girls. She told me, “You keep getting out in the 70s and 80s and you are not doing justice to your talent and all of that stuff. It’s high time you get a century in T20Is.” ‘Okay, Radha, I’ll see now. I’ll attempt to get it in one of the series matches this time,’ Smriti Mandhana remarked.
didn’t anticipate that happening in the opening game: Smriti Mandhana
In lieu of Harmanpreet Kaur, who was unable to play because of a head injury, the southpaw was leading the squad. She hit 15 fours and three sixes to lead the visitors to 210/5, which was their second-highest total in Women’s T20Is. After hitting the three-figure mark, she grinned and raised a finger at her buddy after scoring her century in just 51 balls.
“The finger was pointing at her, and I got it today, even though I didn’t think it would happen in the first match. Since you had the chance to lead the squad through the last ten years, it’s very annoying to be out in the 70s and 80s. Therefore, I’m glad I was able to stay and lead the team into the 19th and 20th overs,” she continued.
In the meantime, Nat Sciver-Brunt (66 off 42) played a valiant effort as the home team was bowled out for 113 in 14.5 overs. Shree Charani, who made her debut for India, took four wickets. While Radha and Deepti Sharma each claimed two wickets, the visitors took a 0-1 series lead.
“It was simply incredible how the bowlers bowled and carried out the strategy. When they bowl like that, it makes our job so much easier since they were all really focused and knew what they were doing. In particular, Shree should bowl in the opening game. We got a glimpse of her abilities in the WPL. She always had the appearance of being a really skilled bowler. However, she and all of the bowlers bowled brilliantly today,” Mandhana said.
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