India secured their place in the
After Hong Kong captained the side to win the toss and elected to field, Mandhana immediately seized control. Alongside opening partner Shafali Verma, who contributed a brisk 28 off 17 balls, Mandhana set a blistering pace. While wickets fell at regular intervals at the other end, the opener remained composed and aggressive, accelerating through her innings to reach a 57-ball century before eventually finishing on 124 from 64 deliveries.
A historic performance from Mandhana
Mandhana’s innings was a masterclass in T20 batting, featuring 14 fours and seven sixes at a strike rate of 193.75. This performance saw her reach 18 international centuries, moving past Meg Lanning’s previous record of 17 to become the most prolific century-maker in women's international cricket. Furthermore, her score of 124 eclipsed the previous record for the highest individual total in Women's T20 Asia Cup history, surpassing the 119 set by Sri Lanka's Chamari Athapaththu.
Though Mandhana was eventually run out in the final over following a mix-up with Bharti Fulmali, her contribution had already propelled India to a formidable total of 193/5. The platform she provided ensured that India remained in a position of total dominance throughout the contest.
Spinners stifle Hong Kong chase
Facing a daunting target, the Hong Kong batting lineup struggled to find any momentum against India’s disciplined spin-heavy attack. The pressure was applied from the opening over, and the side quickly slipped to 32/3 as they failed to rotate the strike or find the boundary against accurate bowling.
Deepti Sharma spearheaded the effort, returning impressive figures of 3/9 from her three overs, including the crucial dismissals of Natasha Miles and Yasmin Daswani. The rest of the bowling unit maintained the intensity, with Prema Rawat and Nandani Sharma each claiming two wickets to ensure there was no recovery for the opposition. Marina Lamplough provided brief resistance with a score of 14, but the lower order collapsed rapidly under the sustained pressure. The match concluded in the 17th over when Shree Charani stumped Shanzeen Shahzad, wrapping up a comprehensive win for India.
