Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], December 28 (ANI): India Women registered their highest-ever team total in T20I cricket as the opening duo of Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma, powered the hosts to a commanding 221/2 in the fourth T20I of the five-match series against Sri Lanka at the Greenfield International Stadium on Sunday.

Mandhana and Shafali were at their destructive best at the top of the order, stitching together a monumental 162-run opening stand. It was a record-breaking partnership, now the highest for India Women for any wicket in T20Is, surpassing their own previous best of 143 runs against West Indies in 2019. The pair laid a solid foundation with aggressive intent from the very start, ensuring Sri Lanka were constantly under pressure.

Mandhana scored 80 off 48 deliveries, including eleven boundaries and three sixes, and Verma made 79 off 46 balls, lacing with twelve boundaries and a six. The innings not only highlighted India's growing batting depth but also reaffirmed Mandhana and Shafali's reputation as one of the most formidable opening combinations in women's T20I cricket.

The partnership further underlined Mandhana and Shafali's status as one of the most prolific opening pairs in women's T20I cricket. With this innings, they now have four 100-plus opening stands together, placing them joint-third on the all-time list. Only UAE's Esha Oza and Theertha Satish, with six such stands, and Australia's Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney, with four, are level in this elite category.

Mandhana and Shafali's consistency over the years is also reflected in their overall partnership numbers. They now top the list for most partnership runs in Women's T20Is for any wicket, having accumulated 3107 runs together. They are followed by Australia's Healy and Mooney with 2720 runs, UAE pairs Esha Oza and Theertha Satish (2579) and Kavisha Egodage and Esha Oza (1976), and New Zealand's Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine with 2556 runs.

In terms of sustained dominance, Mandhana and Shafali also lead the chart for the most 50-plus stands in Women's T20Is for any wicket. The Indian pair have now registered 24 such partnerships, comfortably ahead of Healy and Mooney's 20, Bates and Devine's 18, Esha Oza and Theertha Satish's 18, and Kavisha Egodage with Oza's 14. (ANI)