Delhi: The Indian women's cricket team will face Bangladesh in the first semi-final of the Women's Asia Cup 2026 on Thursday. In this match, all eyes will be on star opener Smriti Mandhana, who is just 69 runs away from a big world record.
If Mandhana scores 69 runs against Bangladesh, she will be on top in terms of scoring most runs in women's T20 International cricket. Currently, this record is in the name of New Zealand's veteran Suzie Bates.
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69 runs away from Mandhana breaking Suzie Bates' record
Suzie Bates has scored 4,758 runs in 186 T20 International matches. At the same time, Mandhana has scored 4,690 runs in 174 matches. He has 2 centuries and 35 half-centuries to his name in T20 International cricket.
Mandhana now needs 69 runs to break Bates' record. If she achieves this figure in the semi-finals, she will become the highest run-scorer in women's T20 international cricket.
In this list, Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur is at third place with 4,249 runs, while Sri Lanka's Chamri Atapattu is at fourth place with 4,095 runs.
Mandhana is in great form in Asia Cup
Smriti Mandhana is in great form in the ongoing Women's Asia Cup. She has scored 152 runs in 3 matches so far and is the highest run-scorer of the tournament.
Mandhana played a stormy inning of 124 runs in just 64 balls against Hong Kong. His innings included 14 fours and 7 sixes. She is the first and so far the only batsman to score a century in this Asia Cup. Now Team India will expect a big innings from him in the semi-finals also.
India's dominance against Bangladesh
India has dominated Bangladesh in T20 international cricket. So far 24 matches have been played between the two teams, in which India has won 21 matches, while Bangladesh has got only 3 wins.
Since September 2023, India has won 8 consecutive T20 International matches against Bangladesh. In such a situation, the Indian team seems to have the upper hand in the semi-finals of the Asia Cup.
Also read: India clash with Bangladesh in Women's Asia Cup semi-finals, know when and where to watch LIVE match
India is now eyeing a place in the finals by winning the semi-finals and winning a record 8th Asia Cup trophy. At the same time, Smriti Mandhana has a great opportunity to make a personal record in this important match.