Smriti Shriniwas Mandhana is one of the top-rated Indian cricketers. She started her career in a debut test match against England Cricket Team. The startling batter is also an exceptional right-arm spin bowler, who never fails a chance to impress the masses. The star cricketer entered the National Women’s Cricket Team in 2018 when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selected her. This year started a series of outstanding performances and added glory to her cricket career. Here, you will get to know the Top 10 Amazing Facts about Smriti Mandhana.
1. Cricket Is Her Family Legacy!
Born in Mumbai, Maharashtra; Smriti’s brother, Shravan was the main source of inspiration for her to start playing cricket. Her father, Mr. Srinivas was also a district-level cricket player for Sangli. So, she got all the support from her family and established her place in Cricket World.
2. Debut At The Age Of Just 11!
Well, it might be shocking for you and probably not easy to digest. But, this is a fact that she played her first match when she was just 11 years old. Smriti got selected for the Under-15 Cricket team and marked the beginning of her struggle in the field.
3. Prioritised Cricket Over Education
You might not be aware of the fact that Cricket was always the first priority of our star cricketer. She skipped her 12th Board Exams as she has to attend the World T20 Cup 2014. Later, she also missed the chance to secure admission to the college as she had to go for her England Tour.
4. First Woman To Score Double-century
Her outstanding performance in a one-day domestic game at Gujarat gave her an exceptional breakthrough in the Cricket World and she became popular. With 224 runs in 150 balls in the Under-19 tournament organized at Vadodara, she got the attention of cricket fanatics all over the country.
5. First International Century Against Australia
Smriti Mandhana scored 102 runs in 109 balls in the second ODI held at Bellerive, Oval. Although her team didn’t win the match, her performance was excellent. And, she became the only Indian player to be listed in the ICC Women’s Ratings of 2016.
6. Honored With Arjuna Award
Smriti Mandhana has impressed everyone with her brilliant performances one by one. She got honored with Arjuna Award in 2018 and was now counted in the top players of India.
7. First Indian To Play Kia Super League
The star woman cricketer signed up for the Kia Super League in 2018 and became the first Indian player to do so. Eventually, her name was also added to the list for Hobart Hurricanes Squad in the 2018-19 BBL season.
8. Third Cricketer To Hit 1000 Runs Wt20I Matches!
After her first century, Smriti was recognized by the masses and she got selected for West Indies Tour and hit 1000 runs in the same tournament. Her brilliant performance was the leading run-scorer in the Women’s ODI with an average of 66.90.
9. Became International Woman Cricketer!
Well, all her extraordinary performances resulted in her winning the International Woman Cricketer Award for the year 2019 at the CEAT International Awards Felicitation Function.
10. Third-fastest Cricketer To Hit 2000 Runs Mark!
Smriti has been growing in her journey very beautifully and with her incessant boundaries, she became the third-fastest cricketer to score 2000 runs in Women’s One Day Internationals.
