Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Varma smashed a plethora of records en route to a 292-run opening stand against South Africa at Chennai.
Records tumbled after Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma put on a sustained onslaught against South Africa at the Chennai Test match after Harmanpreet Kaur won the toss and opted to bat. Verma took only 66 balls for her fifty an 113 for her hundred, fewer than Mandhana’s 78 and 122, but Mandhana exploded after reaching her hundred, leaving Verma behind.
By then, however, they had rewritten many a record. Mandhana and Verma went past their own 167, the existing first-wicket record for India in the format, set against England at Bristol in 2021.
They then set the second instance of both openers scoring hundreds in a women’s Test innings, after Charlotte Edwards (117) and Laura Newton (103) for England against New Zealand at Scraborough in 2004. Both Verma and Mandhana subsequently went past both Edwards and Newton.
Verma’s 113-ball ton was the fastest in women’s Test matches, while Mandhana is now the second. Janette Brittin (138 balls for England against Australia at Perth in 1984/85) held the previous record*.
When they crossed 241, they set a new world record for the first wicket, previously held by Kiran Baluch and Sajjida Shah against the West Indies at Karachi in 2004.
Next in line was 275 – the highest partnership for any wicket for India – set by Thirushkamini and Punam Raut when India and South Africa last played a women’s Test match, at Mysuru in 2014/15.
The partnership eventually came to an end when Delmi Tucker had Mandhana caught by Annerie Dercksen at slip. By then, the pair had amassed 292, the second-highest for any wicket in history, after Denise Annetts and Lindsay Reeler (309 for the second wicket for Australia against England at Wetherby in 1987).
Mandhana made 149 in 161 balls, the first time a batter missed a score of 150 by a solitary run (Annetts had remained unbeaten on 148 against England at Sydney in 1991/92). Verma reached 150 not too long afterwards.
Mandhana’s 149 is now the highest of all second-highest scores in a team innings. She went past Kathryn Leng’s 144, which had come in the same innings when Barbara Daniels had made 160 for England against New Zealand at Scarborough in 1996.
Mandhana’s strike rate of 92.5 was better any other hundred in women’s Test before today when she got out. Verma eventually finished with a 197-ball 205, which help her attain a strike rate of 104, surpass Mandhana, and secure the top spot*.
Mandhana’s 27 fours are the joint-third in the format*, after Baluch’s 38 (Karachi 2004, mentioned above) and Karen Rolton’s 29 (England versus New Zealand, Leeds 2001). Verma has already hit a world record eight sixes*, surpassing the previous record of only two, held by several batters (including Verma herself, twice).
Verma went on to smash the fastest double hundred by some distance, off 194 balls. Annabel Sutherland (248 balls for Australia against South Africa, Perth 2023/24) previously held the record. She fell for 205, the secoind-highest individual score for India (after Mithali Raj’s 214 against England at Taunton in 2002), and the seventh-highest in history.
At the time of writing, India were 418-3 with Verma on 165 from 170 balls. India’s highest total is 467 (against England, Taunton 2002), while the highest total by any side is Australia’s 575-9 declared (against South Africa, Perth 2023/24).
*where data is available
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