Treat for the eyes - Smriti Mandhana on batting alongside Shafali Verma

Smriti Mandhana smashed a phenomenal 80-run knock last night as India overpowered Sri Lanka to go 4-0 up in the T20I series. En route to her 80, she entered into a rare club of elite women cricketers who have all gone past the 10,000-run mark in international cricket.

For her efforts up front, Smriti bagged the Player of the Match award, and talking at the post-match presentation, she opened up on the emotions of getting back to the runs while highlighting what her plans were against the visitors.

Shedding light on her feelings after a very special innings, Mandhana said, “Yeah, it felt really good. We’ve played a lot of one-day cricket over the last six months, so the first three matches were a bit tricky in terms of getting back into T20 mode. Mentally, it’s a different space after so much ODI cricket.”

Explaining her mindset and approach, Mandhana added, “I had plans against their bowling, I knew what to expect, but in the first few games I probably gave my wicket away trying to execute shots I’d been practicing. I came here early and worked on a few things, but no matter how much you train, doing it out in the middle is always different.”

She knitted together a record-breaking stand of 162 runs with Shafali Verma up top. Underlining her chemistry with Shafali, Mandhana said, “Batting with Shafali is always a treat for the eyes. The way she started, she made my job a lot easier. I could take my time, rotate strike, and get into rhythm while she did most of the heavy hitting early on. We complement each other really well - we understand whose day it is and play accordingly. And I’m really happy with how much she’s matured with her batting.”

She concluded with a word about team effort, adding, “In the last one year there's a different team building that has happened, everyone celebrates each other’s success. It’s a conscious effort - to be there for one another whether things are going great or not so great. When she (Kamalini) took that catch, we were all thrilled because it was her first time out there in an India jersey.”