India’s Smriti Mandhana marked her Kia Super League debut in England with a 20-ball 48 as her side, Western Storm, beat Yorkshire Diamonds by seven wickets on Sunday.
Chasing Yorkshire’s target of 163, Western Storm started on the back foot as after Mandhana lost her opening partner, Rachel Priest early on. The Indian, though, did not let the setback faze her. She led the team’s counter-attack with some lusty blows. Her 31-minute stay at the crease saw her smash as many as five sixes and three boundaries.
She formed a 79-run stand with captain Heather Knight to help lay the solid base for her side’s chase. Knight went on to score 97 and all but ensure victory for her team. Western Storm crossed the line soon after Knights exit with 27 balls remaining.
The 21-year-old India opener has been in fine form in 2018 and recently captained the Trailblazers in the one-off IPL exhibition game. She has scored 826 runs with a high score of 76 in 40 T20Is and 1464 runs in 41 ODIs at an average of 37.53 with a high score of 135.
