Smriti Mandhana slams a century in third ODI against New Zealand (@BCCIWomen/X.com)
After a series of failures, India Women's star opener Smriti Mandhana finally scored a blistering century in the third ODI against New Zealand Women. That marked Smriti's 8th ton in ODI career, and she surpassed Mithali Raj to become the highest century scorer for India Women in the 50-over format.
Smriti Mandhana is grappling with a lean patch since the 2024 Women's T20 World Cup, where team India failed to advance to the knockout stages. Moreover, in the ongoing ODI series against New Zealand Women, Mandhana was dismissed for 5 in the first game, followed by a two-ball duck in the second contest. However, with the series on the line, Smriti beat her struggles to come out shining in the third ODI held earlier today at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Smriti Mandhana breaks slump to score a ton
New Zealand batted first to post a 232/10 total courtesy of Brooke Halliday's valiant 86 off 96 balls effort. In the chase, Shafali Verma's early wicket put India Women under tremendous pressure. This was the perfect opportunity for Smriti Mandhan to become a hero, and she did just that. She picked her shots and played a composed innings to keep the required rate in check. With 10 boundaries, Mandhana found gaps in the middle but refrained from taking too much risk.
She reaped the rewards of her patience and reached her 8th ODI ton in 120 balls. With that, Smriti Mandhana surpassed legend Mithali Raj to become the highest century scorer for India Women in ODI format.
Most Centuries for India Women in ODIs
| Player | Number Of Centuries |
|---|---|
| Smriti Mandhana | 8 |
| Mithali Raj | 7 |
| Harmanpreet Kaur | 6 |
Raj and Smriti jointly held the record previously with 7 tons each. But Smriti surpassed her idol to leave her own legacy in India Women's cricket. Owing to her anchoring knock, India finished the chase in 44.2 overs to take home a comfortable 6-wicket victory and clinched the three-game series as well.
Mandhana falls in ICC rankings
Prior to her century in the third ODI, Smriti Mandhana registered failures in the first two games, resulting in a fall in ICC ODI rankings. In revised rankings, Mandhana lost her 3rd place in ODI batter rankings to drop down to 4th with 705 rating. Nat Sciver-Brunt still holds the top spot with 760 rating.
 "Akshita Patel")
