Smriti Mandhana Breaks World Record, Joins Elite Club in Women’s T20I Cricket

Smriti Mandhana reached a rare milestone on Thursday, becoming the first Indian woman to score 4,000 runs in T20 internationals. She is only the second player overall to do so, after New Zealand great Suzie Bates.

Mandhana now has 4,007 runs in women’s T20Is and is closing in on another landmark. She is just 42 runs away from completing 10,000 international runs across formats, underlining her long-term consistency.

The left-hander also became the fastest to 4,000 T20I runs in terms of balls faced. Mandhana got there in 3,227 balls, quicker than Suzie Bates, who needed 3,675 deliveries.

The milestone came during the first T20I against Sri Lanka at Visakhapatnam. Mandhana scored 25 off 25 balls in India’s chase of 122, playing her first match since India’s ODI World Cup title win over South Africa last month.

Her numbers across formats now stand strong. Mandhana has 4,007 runs in T20Is, 5,322 in ODIs, and 629 in Tests, putting her among the most reliable batters in women’s cricket.

While Mandhana reached a personal high, the match belonged to Jemimah Rodrigues. She smashed an unbeaten 69 off 44 balls, hitting 10 fours to seal India’s eight-wicket win in just 14.4 overs.

Jemimah also matched a long-standing Indian record. She equalled Mithali Raj’s tally of four scores of fifty or more against Sri Lanka in women’s T20Is.

Mandhana and Jemimah added 54 runs for the second wicket, keeping the chase steady. After Mandhana’s dismissal, Jemimah stitched an unbeaten 55-run stand with captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who finished on 15 not out.

Earlier, India’s bowlers set up the win with a tight display. Sri Lanka were restricted to 121 for 6, with Vishmi Gunaratne top-scoring with 39 off 43 balls.

Deepti Sharma led the bowling effort with 1 for 20 in four overs, including a maiden. Kranti Gaud picked up 1 for 23 in three overs, while Shree Charani finished with 1 for 30 in four.

The result gave India a confident start to the series, but the night will be remembered for Mandhana’s historic 4,000-run mark and another calm, match-winning knock from Jemimah Rodrigues.