Smriti Mandhana breaks the record for most fifties, and Richa Ghosh equals the quickest fifty achievement as India wins its first T20I series at home in five years, scoring their highest-ever T20 total.
With the series on the line, Smriti Mandhana and Richa Ghosh put up a high-intent performance in Navi Mumbai, delivering searing half-centuries. India broke a record in Navi Mumbai on Thursday night, defeating the West Indies by 60 runs in the T20I series finale. First, Mandhana set a record for the most 50-plus scores in women’s T20Is. After she was dismissed, Ghosh came in and scored an 18-ball half-century, the joint-fastest in this format. And those two hits helped India reach 217/4, their highest-ever total in women’s T20Is.
Hayley Matthews won the toss for the third time in a row and had little hesitation in bowling first, considering the dew factor at the DY Patil Stadium, which makes it a chase-friendly ground. Chinelle Henry’s first over saw the ball swing around dramatically, and she also dismissed Uma Chetry for a duck. India paid the price for failing to get off to a good start in the series’ second encounter, but stand-in captain Mandhana recovered fast.
Mandhana started with a boundary through the offside in the second over, but her onslaught really began in the third. First, she faced Chinelle Henry and hit three consecutive fours. She then scored four, six, four, four after returning to strike in Deandra Dottin’s over, totalling seven boundaries in a row. It was an ideal start for Mandhana and India.
