Smriti Mandhana scored 90 off just 67 balls for the Trailblazers in IPL women’s T20 Challenge. (Source: IPL)Smriti Mandhana continued her rich vein of form in the opening match of the Women’s T20 Challenge to score a stellar 90 off just 67 deliveries on Monday. Leading from the front, the Trailblazers’ skipper anchored the innings against Supernovas on a tough track at the Sawai Mann Singh stadium, Jaipur. Her beautiful knock was laced with 10 exquisite fours and 3 huge sixes.
At the venue, the stadium was far from full but that did not affect Mandhana’s batting. Timing the ball perfectly Mandhana paced her knock well after the early wicket of Kiwi batter Suzie Bates.
She shared a 119-run partnership with Harleen Deol to lay the platform for others to accelerate towards the end. Striking at 134.33, Mandhana was brutal, particularly against the spinners.
Her footwork, which reminded of former India captain Sourav Ganguly, saw her hit some brilliant strokes over extra cover region.
As wickets started to fall at the other end, the 22-year-old took it upon herself to do the most of scoring helping her side post a total of 140/5. She finally perished for 90 while trying to up the ante in the final over.
Good to see Smriti Mandhana continue her good form. She is going to be one of the major draws at the #WomensIPL
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) 6 May 2019
Reflecting on her innings, Mandhana said, “The way I started my innings, I wasn’t timing the ball, and I had to create a partnership and then launch. Different kind of innings for me, and really happy with the way Harleen and I batted. Expected the wicket to be a lot better, it was spicy that’s why I was struggling.”
“It was not because of the break, I have been practicing a lot but the wicket was different from what I had expected. I am really proud the way Harleen batted – when I asked her for a boundary or the strike, she got it every time. The wicket looks like it’s on the slower side and we have some good spin options, so looking forward to defending this score. I think we have enough runs on the board.” she added.
