India and Hong Kong, China faced each other in the Women’s Asia Cup 2026, with Hong Kong, China winning the toss and opting to bowl first. What followed was a dominant batting display from Smriti Mandhana, who took complete control of the innings and powered India to 194. In reply, Hong Kong, China were bowled out for just 56, handing India a commanding 137-run victory. The win also made India the first team to qualify for the Asia Cup semi-finals.
Mandhana began in her usual composed fashion, taking her time to settle in before shifting gears. She was initially 18 off 18 balls, but once she found her rhythm, the scoring rate climbed quickly. Her timing remained impeccable as she combined her trademark drives with powerful strokes over the boundary.
She brought up her 36th T20I fifty with a six and continued to take the attack apart. At 82, she struck back-to-back sixes over deep square leg and long-off, showing how comfortably she could switch between placement and power. Even while attacking, Mandhana never appeared rushed, maintaining her balance and shape throughout the innings.
Mandhana soon completed her second T20I century, reaching the milestone in just 58 balls with a cut through the off side. Her innings came to an end when she was run out.
Mandhana’s breathtaking 124 off 64 balls rewrote several records. It was her highest T20I score, surpassing her previous best of 112, and made her the first Indian woman to score two T20I centuries. Her seven sixes took her tally to 90, making her India’s leading six-hitter in women’s T20Is.
With this century, Mandhana now has 18 international hundreds, moving past Meg Lanning and Laura Wolvaardt, who had 17 each. Eight of her centuries have come outside the subcontinent, while 10 have been scored inside it. She also went past Mithali Raj’s 10,868 international runs, taking her tally to 10,880 across formats.
Her latest fifty brought her level with Mithali’s record of 93 scores of 50 or more in international cricket. Mandhana has also become the highest run-scorer in Women’s Asia Cup history with 584 runs, surpassing Chamari Athapaththu
Her innings was marked by a stunning acceleration too, with 22 runs coming from her first 21 balls, followed by 27 from the next 21. She then exploded for 58 runs off her final 22 deliveries, including three consecutive sixes in the 17th over.
Speaking to the broadcasters after her record-breaking knock, Mandhana admitted that she was unaware of the number of milestones she had achieved during the innings.
“I didn’t know all of this happened. That’s why you reminded me,” she said, reacting to the list of records she had broken.
Reflecting on her innings, Mandhana credited the Hong Kong bowlers for making things difficult early on.
“It’s really hard for a batter to play slightly slower bowlers, but credit to them. They were really disciplined in the powerplay and bowled pretty well. The kind of energy they showed was something which we all can learn from,” she said.
Asked about Hong Kong’s decision to bowl predominantly outside the off stump, Mandhana played down the advantage it may have given her.
“There are days where you hit balls from the stumps as well, there are days where you don’t. There are days where you edge one from the fourth or fifth stump. Batting is extremely unpredictable,” she explained.
The vice-captain of the Indian team also spoke about the surface, admitting that it was slightly challenging during the powerplay.
“It did keep a little lower in the powerplay, a few balls just slipped through. But once you got your eyes set, it was a little easier to pick up the length and just go under the ball a little more,” she said.
Mandhana ended by once again praising Hong Kong for their effort and highlighting the significance of the occasion for the team.
“I’ll just keep talking about them because it was the first time we were playing them, and it’s just a memorable occasion for them as well,” she said.
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