Twitter reacts to Smriti Mandhana's dazzling knock in The Hundred
On Tuesday evening, Smriti Mandhana became only the fourth player to score a half-century in The Hundred to lead her side, the Southern Brave, to victory against the Welsh Fire.
With her side chasing a measly target of 110 runs, Mandhana initially took her time before unleashing some sumptuous strokes to switch gears and take the game away from the Welsh Fire.
With her usual elegance in her stroke-making, Mandhana showed some exquisite use of the feet to combine precision with power to put on a dazzling display as she led her side to victory with 16 balls to spare.
Mandhana's unbeaten knock of 61 in 39 deliveries included five fours and three sixes. She also now has the most sixes in the women's tournament.
In her post-match interview, Mandhana said:
"The wicket seemed slightly slower initially, but when I got in to bat I thought it was a good wicket to bat on. I took a few balls to see how the wicket was playing and just tried to play my shots after taking my time. This victory was all about the bowlers and fielders, nothing to do with the batting. A target of 110, as a batter, you have to chase that."
The Indian opener's performance was a treat to watch for fans who took to Twitter to express their delight. Here are some of the reactions:
Mandhana becomes the second Indian player to score a half-century in The Hundred
There might only be five Indian players at The Hundred but they aren't wasting any time leaving their mark on the inaugural edition of the tournament. Smriti Mandhana became only the fourth player to score a half-century in the tournament after Jemimah Rodrigues, Dane Van Niekerk and Alice Capsey.
Interestingly enough, the two Indians have scored three half-centuries in the tournament, with Rodrigues achieving that feat twice in as many games.
Meanwhile, their international counterpart Harmanpreet Kaur narrowly missed out on her half-century. She scored a valiant unbeaten 49 against the Birmingham Phoenix only a couple of days ago.
The Indian women have lit up the inaugural edition of The Hundred so far. Fans will be hoping that the likes of Shefali Verma and Deepti Sharma can give them some impressive performances to go gaga over soon.