IND W vs SA W | Twitter relieved as edgy Smriti Mandhana calms nerves with stupendous six

‌With rain delaying proceedings at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam, South Africa finally opted to bowl in the World Cup game against India under overcast conditions. Opener Pratika Rawal, surprisingly, started aggressively against medium pacer Marizanne Kapp with two boundaries in the first over.

However, Smriti Mandhana was struggling to put bat on ball and find her rhythm against the Proteas pacers. She played out 14 dot balls in the first seven overs and was placed at seven off 20 deliveries.

But Pratika continued her newfound aggression as India reached 36/0 before Smriti joined in with a stunning shot. The left-handed batter, in a bid to negate the swing, tried walking down the track in the earlier overs, but to no avail as the Proteas bowlers cleverly pulled back their lengths.

But she caught Ayabonga Khaka by surprise, stepping down the track to a good length delivery that pitched around off stump. She met the ball right under her eyes and extended her sweet backswing to send the ball soaring behind the bowler.

The timing saw the ball pitch beyond the ropes as she broke the shackles, with her partner Pratika silently admiring the hit. Twitter was in awe as Smriti found a way to get out of the shell, much to her relief.

What a shot!

— Sanjuvsamson (@Sanjuvsams50351) 

Really?

Jis ball pe six marna hota h jo dot khelti h aur jis pe dot khelna chahiye use six marne jati hai

Meri smriti mandhana paglet hai



I mean brain dead

Koi plash se milwawo use  

— aditya yadav (@imyadavji) 

Superb

Smriti Mandhana started her innings with a six.🔥🔥👑 

— The Cricket Army (@The_army001) 

She loved it

Smriti's smile after hitting that six <3

— shwe (@calzonefiend) 

Big one

And if Pratika goes on to score a big one from here...😂

Meanwhile Smriti broke the shackles with an authoritative six!!!! 

— Ritwika Dhar (@RituD307) 

Straight one

Smriti got that boundary she was looking for a while.

Thats a straight six.

— Mr. Athar not Ali Khan 🇮🇳🏏 (@cricdrugs) 

Close one

Smriti Mandhana's innings comes to a close after a promising cameo of 23, showcasing her potential for future impact.



📸: Jio hotstar     

— Jitendra Kumar (@jitenda60203698) 

Certified

Smriti Mandhana is a certified choker.🤡     

— kuldeep singh (@kuldeep0745) 

Fantastic

🚨Smriti Mandhana has broken Belinda Clarke’s 28 year old record of MOST RUNS IN A CALENDAR YEAR IN ODIs 🚨



- Hope she gets the big runs soon in this World Cup!     

— Cricketism (@MidnightMusinng) 

Brilliant

🚨 BCCI WOMEN POSTER FOR SMRITI MANDHANA 🚨



- QUEEN OF INDIAN TEAM  

— Rana Ahmed (@RanaAhmad056)