Smriti Mandhana is fully dedicated to preparing for the Asian Games 2023, and her efforts are paying off. On Friday, August 4, she achieved an impressive feat by scoring her second consecutive half-century in the Women’s Hundred tournament. Playing for the Southern Brave, she played an outstanding innings, smashing 70 runs in just 42 deliveries during their match against the Welsh Fire at the Rose Bowl in Southampton.
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Mandhana reached her fifty after facing 33 deliveries, securing it with a boundary via the mid-wicket off Freya Davies. The left-handed batter remained unbeaten, hitting 11 fours during her innings. Notably, she achieved the milestone of becoming the first player to amass 500 runs in the Women’s Hundred tournament. Additionally, the 27-year old established a record by recording the most 50 plus scores (5) in the competition.
Mandhana’s spectacular performance couldn’t change the outcome as the Brave suffered a four-run defeat. Despite her brilliant efforts, she couldn’t hit the boundary off Hayley Matthews’ final delivery when they needed five runs. Earlier in the match, Matthews played an outstanding knock, scoring 65 runs off 38 balls, including 13 fours, contributing significantly to the Fire’s impressive total – the second-highest in the history of the Women’s Hundred.
In addition to her batting heroics, Matthews’ all-round brilliance earned her the Player of the Match award, as she crucially dismissed Chloe Tryon. Throughout the tournament, Smriti Mandhana has displayed impressive form, excelling as the leading run-scorer with 125 runs from two games, boasting an average of 125 and a strike-rate of 160.25. Under the captaincy of Anya Shrubsole, the Brave currently holds the third position in the table with two points and a net run rate of 0.575, courtesy of a victory in one of their two matches played so far.
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