Smriti Mandhana has caught the nation’s fancy, after scoring a 90 and 106 in India’s first two matches at the ongoing Women’s World Cup 2017. She might have failed against Pakistan, and then against Sri Lanka, but her talent was there for all to see.
We did a little bit of background research on her, and figured out a few things you should know.
She Is A Big Fan Of Kumar Sangakkara
“She never used to leave the nets unless she had mastered a shot. Later on, she became a fan of Kumar Sangakkara. In the nets, she always tried to copy Sangkara while batting. Sometimes I had scolded her for trying to copy the Sri Lankan great,” Smriti’s coach Anant Tambvekar told One India.
Her Brother Shravan Mandhana Was Also A Cricketer, Who Failed To Make It Big
Smriti followed her brother’s footsteps to become a cricketer. Even though his brother never really made it big (he played for Maharashtra U19), Smriti took it upon herself to become famous. “My father never said no to me, so whenever my brother went for a net session, he used to lob balls at me gently,” she told ESPN Cricinfo. To be fair to her brother, he did really well academically and became the branch manager of a bank in Sangli.
She Scored A Double Century With A Bat Given By Rahul Dravid
“I have been scoring very well since the time I have started playing with Dravid sir’s bat. My brother met Dravid during his visit to Bangalore last year and told him about my passion for cricket. Dravid gifted his practice bat to me and since then I have been playing with it,” Smriti told TOI, after she scored an unbeaten knock of 224 from just 150 balls in a West Zone U-19 tournament.
She Played The Big Bash League For Brisbane Heat
“I am looking forward very much to working with the Australian girls in the Heat squad after playing against them last season. That was a good series, and I noticed there was a definite difference between their preparation and our preparation so I am keen to learn from the differences. Things like fitness and how they train for a series like the WBBL and the way they work on their fielding are areas I am interested in,” Mandhana told cricket.com.au.
She Loves Arijit Singh Songs
According to a Cricinfo report, Mandhana loves listening to Arijit Singh songs. Mandhana, if you are reading this, please know that I love listening to them too.
She Came Of Age During India’s Tour To England In 2014
“Whatever little doubts I had, vanished after the England tour. That tour changed me as a cricketer. To score a fifty and win the Test, which was our first win in eight years, was extremely special. After that, we started getting more matches. So now, I’m thankful that my mother prevented me from choosing science in school. I wouldn’t have been able to manage, no way,” she told ESPN Cricinfo.
