Smriti Mandhana, the Indian vice-captain, picked up her first international wicket during the second ODI of the three-match series against South Africa at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday, June 19. After setting up a massive first innings score of 325/3 with a fantastic hundred, the 27-year-old dismissed Sune Luus cheaply to put South Africa on the back foot.
In the 15th over of the South African innings, the Indian captain, Harmanpreet Kaur, gave the ball to her deputy Smriti Mandhana. After starting her spell with a dot, she delivered a back-of-a-length delivery outside off, which bounced a bit extra on Sune Luus.
The right-handed batter tried to cut the ball on top of the bounce, but she was unable to middle it. The ball kissed the outside edge of the bat, only to nestle into the gloves of Richa Ghosh behind the stumps, which led to a disappointed Sune Luus trudging back to the pavilion for 12 off 13.
On the other side, Smriti Mandhana celebrated her first wicket in international cricket in style with her teammates.
Moreover, in the first half of the match, Smriti Mandhana notched up back-to-back ODI hundreds, scoring 136 off 120 with 18 fours and two maximums. After starting cautiously in the first powerplay stage alongside her opening partner Shafali Verma, she showcased the array of her strokes in a partnership of 62 runs with Dayalan Hemalatha.
But it was her 171-run stand for the third wicket alongside Harmanpreet Kaur, which put India in a position of great strength. The captain of India got her hundred in the last over of the innings, finishing up unbeaten with 103 off 88, which included nine fours and three maximums.
Here is the clip of Smriti Mandhana picking up her first international wicket: