June 23rd 2024.
On a sunny Sunday in Bengaluru, Indian opener Smriti Mandhana made headlines as she scored a whopping 90 runs against South Africa in the third ODI. This stellar performance not only secured her team's victory but also made her the highest run-scorer by an Indian woman in a bilateral ODI series.
Mandhana's consistent performance throughout the three-match series was truly impressive. With a total of 343 runs, she once again proved her dominance in the final match after scoring back-to-back centuries in the first two games. This outstanding achievement also surpassed the previous record set by former Indian batter Jaya Sharma, who scored 308 runs in five innings against New Zealand back in 2003-04.
The left-handed batter also became the first Indian woman to achieve the feat of scoring consecutive centuries in an ODI series. However, she narrowly missed the chance to become the second player in the world to hit three consecutive hundreds in the ODI format. Nevertheless, she remains the second-highest run-scorer for India in ODIs with a total of 3585 runs, including seven centuries and 25 half-centuries.
In the third ODI, South Africa's captain Laura Wolvaardt's 61 runs, along with Tazmin Brits' 38, helped their team reach a total of 215/8 in 50 overs after choosing to bat first. However, India's Deepti Sharma and Arundhati Reddy took two wickets each, while Shreyanka Patil and Pooja Vastrakar each took one, limiting South Africa's score.
India's chase was led by Harmanpreet Kaur, who scored 42 runs, and Jemimah Rodrigues, who remained unbeaten at 19. In the end, it was Richa Ghosh's six over long-on that sealed the victory for India with six wickets in hand. With this win, India completed a clean sweep of 3-0 against South Africa in the series, ending with a six-wicket win in just 40.4 overs.
Overall, it was an incredible performance by the Indian team, with Mandhana's record-breaking feat and the team's successful whitewash of South Africa. This victory will undoubtedly boost their confidence as they continue to dominate in the world of women's cricket.
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