Smriti Mandhana recently became the most expensive player heading into the maiden Women’s Premier League (WPL) – an overdue women’s iteration of the highly successful and popular Indian Premier League (IPL).

The 26-year-old Indian opener and former teenage prodigy – who has risen to global superstar status since making her T20 international debut for India as a 16-year-old back in 2013, fetched the highest fee at the maiden WPL auction a fortnight ago.

Smriti Mandhana of India prior to the T20 International series between India and Australia at Brabourne Stadium on December 17, 2022 in Mumbai, India. (Photo: Pankaj Nangia / Getty Images)

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) splurged 34-million Indian rupees (R7.3-million) to secure the services of the left-handed batter. This took a huge chunk of RCB’s R26-million purse for the auction.

“WPL is going to be a game-changer for women’s cricket in India. It will especially provide a boost of confidence for women cricketers playing on domestic teams, and give them the validation that they truly deserve,” Mandhana told GQ India in December 2022.

At the time, the RCB captain couldn’t have imagined she’d be the crown jewel of the inaugural season and something of a poster girl for the competition.

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Those that have eagerly followed her career over the years will tell you that she was worth every cent the franchise spent on her ahead of the competition’s kick-off on 4 March – a couple of weeks after the ongoing Women’s T20 World Cup concludes.

Mandhana – who serves as vice-captain in the Indian team – is well-respected in her home country, as well as globally. As evidence, she has won the ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year gong twice. The only other player that has received the accolade more than once is Australian legend Ellyse Perry – with three.

With time very much on her side and the Indian batter always improving on her craft – she is likely to match and even usurp Perry’s haul.

Mandhana also holds the record for the fastest 50 by an Indian woman in T20 internationals.  The electric opener, who possesses an array of shots and the accuracy of a sniper, raced to a record half-century in just 23 balls at last year’s Commonwealth Games semifinal win over England.

That innings beat her own record of a 24-ball half-ton against New Zealand in 2019. Impressively, she is also third on the list. Playing against England in Mumbai (her city of birth) she reached the 50-run milestone from 25 balls.  

Child star

Mandhana picked up a bat when it was not as socially acceptable as it is now for young girls and women to play cricket. Especially in a conservative, though cricket-crazy country such as India.

The sport was popular in her family, with her father and older brother playing it at district level. The latter was particularly influential on the Indian star. The young Mandhana would follow her brother when he went to play for the local team.

By this time, the family had left Mumbai and moved to the city of Sangli. This is where the star batter’s powers truly came to the fore – with her father also a great influence in helping her realise the dream of playing cricket as a career – though at the time the trajectory of women’s cricket was far from what it is now.

“I got quite lucky with my family. It was their dream for me to become a cricketer. A few relatives did express concern about my decision to play the sport professionally, but that never deterred me. I always knew what I wanted to be and overall, I’ve always had people’s support,” Mandhana said in a recent interview with Vogue India.

By the age of nine the opener was part of the Maharashtra state’s under-15 side. Her innate talent was visible for all to see. Hence, she was promoted to the under-19 side – at the wee age of 11.   

Smriti Mandhana during the Women’s T20I Tri-Series match between India and West Indies at Buffalo Park on 23 January 2023 in East London, South Africa. (Photo: Michael Sheehan / Gallo Images)

Five years later she was making her debut for the Indian national team. To demonstrate that she was born to be a star, Mandhana top-scored with 39 runs as her country beat Bangladesh by 10. She hasn’t looked back since.

Still going

In spite of all her individual achievements, as well as being one of most sought-after T20 players in domestic leagues around the world, Mandhana and India are yet to win a World Cup.

With the Indians pitted against the irrepressible Australia in the semifinals of the T20 international showpiece, it is highly possible the wait may be a bit longer for the left-handed batter and her compatriots.

The Australians are the record T20 champions and vanquished India to clinch their fifth world title in the shortest international format, and their third in a row – in 202o.

Mandhana will be crucial if the Indians are to upset the defending champions and book a second consecutive appearance in the World Cup final when the two sides clash at Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town tomorrow.

She warmed up perfectly for a starring role in that crunch tie – notching up her highest T20 international total (87) to help India book their spot in the last four with a five-run win over Ireland.

The haul took her to second on the run-scorers list in the current World Cup – with a return of 149 from the three matches she has played. England’s Nat Sciver-Brunt leads the pack on 176 runs, though she has played one more match than Mandhana.

Against Australia, India will need all their players to be at their optimum. They will pin their hopes on Mandhana to once again spearhead the charge – as she has consistently done over the past 10 years. DM