Shafali Verma surpasses Smriti Mandhana to become the third-highest Indian with the most Player of the Match awards in Women’s T20Is, after smashing an unbeaten 69 off 34 balls against Sri Lanka in Visakhapatnam to claim her 8th POTM at just 21.
Shafali Verma surpasses Smriti Mandhana with 8th POTM
Shafali Verma surpasses Smriti Mandhana by moving to eight POTM awards in just 92 T20Is, going past Mandhana and Deepti Sharma, who both stand on seven.
She now trails only Mithali Raj (12 POTM from 89 matches) and Harmanpreet Kaur (11 POTM from 184 games), joining a select trio of India’s most decisive match-winners in the format.
Shafali Verma surpasses Smriti Mandhana with 69* masterclass
Opening with Mandhana, Shafali hammered 69* off 34 balls with 11 fours and a six, chasing 129 in just 11.5 overs for a seven-wicket win and a 2-0 series lead.
After a 29-run stand with Mandhana (14), she added 58 with Jemimah Rodrigues (26 off 15) and a further 41 with Harmanpreet Kaur (10), showing controlled aggression after assessing early movement and “playing along the ground” before opening up.
Bowlers set it up, series in India’s control
India’s spinners Vaishnavi Sharma and Shree Charani took two wickets each, with Kranti Gaud and Sneh Rana adding one apiece to restrict Sri Lanka to 128, laying the platform for Shafali’s chase.
India now need just one more win from the remaining three T20Is in Thiruvananthapuram to seal the five-match series under Harmanpreet’s leadership.
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