India’s Smriti Mandhana becomes top run-scorer in women’s cricket

What the report says

India’s Smriti Mandhana has moved to the top of women’s international cricket’s run-scoring list after a record innings in the Women’s Asia Cup in Dubai, according to Al Jazeera, citing AFP and Reuters. The 30-year-old left-handed batter scored 124 from 64 balls against Hong Kong in a match played on Thursday, passing former India captain Mithali Raj’s long-standing total of 10,868 international runs.

The innings also helped India secure a place in the tournament semifinals. Al Jazeera reported that Mandhana’s total included 14 fours and seven sixes, as India posted 193-5 and then dismissed Hong Kong for 56 to win by 137 runs. The article said the result was part of India’s strong group-stage performance in the T20 event.

Mandhana also became the leading century-maker in women’s international cricket, reaching 18 hundreds across formats. That moved her ahead of Australia’s Meg Lanning and South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt, who were both on 17. She has now scored international centuries in all three formats, a milestone she reached last year when she made her first T20 international hundred.

The development is significant because it places Mandhana among the most accomplished batters in the women’s game and adds to her profile as India’s vice-captain. Al Jazeera reported that she credited her family and praised Raj as a role model, while also saying there is still more to come in her career.