Smriti Mandhana made a world record… became the world’s youngest cricketer to play 300 international matches.

New Delhi. Indian women’s cricket vice-captain Smriti Mandhana registered her name in golden letters in the pages of history as soon as she stepped onto the historic Lord’s ground in London. As soon as she entered the field in this only historic Test match that started against England, Mandhana played the 300th match of her international career. She has joined the list of select players in the world to achieve this feat. Smriti Mandhana is going to celebrate her 30th birthday next week on 18th July. Just before turning 30, he crossed this magical figure. With this, she has become the youngest cricketer in the world to play 300 international matches in the history of women’s cricket. This achievement of hers shows that she took the responsibility of the Indian team at a very young age and continuously took the team to new heights with her excellent performance.

Smriti Mandhana is the 12th female cricketer to reach this figure in world cricket. At the same time, if we talk about Indian women’s cricket, she has become the third player to achieve this feat. Before her, only two Indian greats have achieved this position, in which captain Harmanpreet Kaur is at the top with 374 matches and after her comes the name of great batsman Mithali Raj who has played 333 matches. Now Mandhana has also become a part of this elite club after completing 300 matches.

Women’s test for the first time at Lord’s ground
This match is very special not only for Mandhana but also for the history of women’s cricket. This is the 56th women’s Test match on English soil, but this is the first women’s Test to be played at Lord’s, which is called the ‘Mecca of Cricket’. Earlier, 55 Test matches played in England were held on 19 different grounds. Of these, the maximum number of 9 matches was hosted by the County Ground of Worcester between 1951 and 2009, while 6 Tests were played at The Oval between 1937 and 1976. In such a situation, this match being played at Lord’s is becoming a witness to the changing nature and increasing popularity of women’s cricket.

Team India’s dominance on English soil
The Test record of the Indian women’s team in hosting England has been quite balanced and strong. This is India’s 10th test match in England. In the 9 matches played earlier, India has played brilliantly, in which the team has got a spectacular victory in 2 matches while the remaining 7 matches have ended in a draw. The interesting thing is that the Indian women’s team has not lost a single test match on English soil till date.

If we talk about the history of women’s Test cricket between the two countries, the Indian team has always had the upper hand in a total of 15 matches. Out of these 15 matches, India has won 3 matches, while 11 matches have been drawn. Whereas the England team has been able to win only 1 match against India in its entire history, which they won in Jamshedpur in the year 1995. Since then the England team is yearning to beat the Indian Lions in the Test format.

England chose bowling
In this historic match, England women’s team won the toss and decided to bowl first. England’s bowlers are expected to get initial help on the green and initially moist pitch of Lord’s. In such a situation, Indian team’s opener and star player Smriti Mandhana will have a big responsibility to make her 300th match innings memorable. Along with him, the Indian team under the leadership of captain Harmanpreet Kaur would like to maintain its dominance on the tour of England by winning this only test.

Smriti Mandhana’s journey of 300 international matches is an example of dedication, hard work and class. Reaching this milestone in one’s career at a historic ground like Lord’s is a dream for any cricketer. This achievement of Mandhana has not only enhanced the prestige of Indian cricket but has also shown a new path for the coming generations. Indian fans will hope that Mandhana makes this historic day even more memorable by winning a big innings in this match.