Tezzbuzz Desk: Indian team's star batsman Smriti Mandhana has a great opportunity to make a big world record in the Women's T20 Asia Cup 2026. After playing an innings of 19 runs against Thailand in the opening match of the tournament, Mandhana has now come very close to becoming the highest run-scorer female player in international cricket. Currently, this record is in the name of former Indian captain and veteran batsman Mithali Raj.
Mithali Raj has scored 10,868 runs in 314 innings in her international career. She has been the highest run-scorer female player in international cricket for a long time. However, now Smriti Mandhana has come very close to this record and can leave Mithali behind only during the Women's T20 Asia Cup. Smriti Mandhana is currently at second place in this list. After scoring 19 runs in the opening match of Asia Cup 2026 against Thailand, he has scored a total of 10,756 international runs in 302 innings. In such a situation, she needs 112 runs to equal Mithali Raj's record and 113 runs to break the record and become number-1.
This means that if Smriti Mandhana scores a total of 113 runs in the upcoming matches of Asia Cup 2026, she will leave Mithali Raj behind. With this, she will become the highest run-scorer female player in international cricket. This achievement will also be special for Mandhana because she is one of the most prominent batsmen of the current generation of Indian women's cricket. Mandhana has many opportunities in the tournament to achieve this record. The Indian team has to play its next match against the Hong Kong women's team on 3 September. After this, India will face arch-rival Pakistan on September 5. Special attention will be kept on Mandhana's performance in both these matches.
Considering Mandhana's batting style and performance in big matches, the figure of 113 runs cannot be considered difficult for her to achieve. However, it is not easy to predict any record in cricket in advance. The pitch, opposition team, match conditions and batsman's form matter a lot. If Mandhana makes this record in her name, it will be a big achievement for Indian women's cricket as well. On one hand, Mithali Raj's brilliant record will be in the name of the star batsman of the new generation, while on the other hand, Mandhana will become the new number-1 batsman of women's cricket in terms of scoring runs in international cricket. Now all eyes will be on the India-Hong Kong match to be held on September 3, where Mandhana can take another big step towards this historic record.