In a year that demanded brilliance across all formats, Smriti Mandhana stood tall as the heartbeat of Indian women’s cricket, scripting a historic season that earned her the title of Wisden’s Leading Women’s Cricketer in the World for 2024. Mandhana’s journey through the calendar year was one of unrelenting excellence, unmatched consistency, and emphatic reinvention – all packed into a trailblazing campaign where she led with the bat and with her presence.
Her aggregate of 1,659 international runs in 2024 stands as the highest ever by a woman in a calendar year, a testament to her adaptability and hunger for dominance. These weren’t just numbers—they were masterclasses stitched across formats: 747 runs in ODIs, 763 in T20Is, and a stirring Test century in a match-winning display against South Africa. No woman had ever scored four ODI centuries in a year before—Mandhana did it with a newfound hunger that transformed her into a complete batter.
Her brilliance wasn’t confined to solo feats. Leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a Women’s Premier League (WPL) title, Mandhana balanced leadership with run-making, asserting her authority as one of the most rounded players on the global stage. Yet, her international contributions shone brighter than ever, especially during India’s home and away series. For fans who follow cricket action beyond just match days, they can check out Betting apps in India that offer real-time engagement and earning opportunities during games featuring stars like Mandhana.
The mid-year series against South Africa marked a defining stretch in Mandhana’s stellar run. She hammered 117, 136, and 90 in the ODIs, tallying 343 runs—the most by a woman in a three-match ODI series. Her form surged into the red-ball format, where she compiled a career-best 149 in the one-off Test to set up a ten-wicket win for India. She rounded off the tour with 100 T20I runs while being dismissed only once, underscoring her unmatched consistency across formats in a single tour.
Reflecting on this transformation, Mandhana explained how she unshackled herself from mental clutter, “All these years, I had been overcomplicating things with questions like: ‘Why am I getting out in the seventies and eighties?’ Clearing my mind helped, big time. I reinjected into my muscle memory the habit of batting long – which I did routinely as an Under-19 cricketer. The batting camp before the South Africa series allowed me to curb my T20-esque urge of shot-making in the longer formats.”
Perhaps no other statistic underlines her impact better than this: she was responsible for nearly 25% of India’s 6,739 runs in 2024. What made it even more remarkable was that she had seven different opening partners, a revolving door that never once unsettled her rhythm. Her brief dip during the T20 World Cup, where she endured a rare off-phase, saw India exit at the group stage—proof of the team’s heavy reliance on her form.
The year ended on a high as Mandhana struck resounding ODI centuries—first against New Zealand in Ahmedabad, then against Australia in Perth—proving she was as solid on home turf as she was overseas. With a blend of her classic off-side dominance and fresh batting innovations, she showcased an evolved version of herself that thrilled fans and analysts alike.
In one of the most telling moments of self-growth, she recalled how a hundred against New Zealand changed her approach to discipline and restraint, “The New Zealand ton matured me beyond imagination,” she says. “After single-digit scores in the World Cup (T20 World Cup 2024), and net sessions where I was edging everything, I resisted the cover-drive, my bread-and-butter shot, through the first ten overs. My best knock of 2024 taught me the most about discipline.”
At just 28, Mandhana’s career is already ornamented with accolades. She is India’s vice-captain, and has bagged four ICC Awards, including the Cricketer of the Year and the ODI Cricketer of the Year. Her 2024 exploits brought her another ODI Cricketer of the Year award in January 2025, underscoring the scale of her dominance. Back in 2018, she became the recipient of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Award, and again in 2021. She also carries the distinction of being the only Indian woman to score a century in a pink-ball Test, an iconic 127 against Australia in 2021.
Her career numbers are as impressive as her year; in Tests, she’s scored 629 runs in 7 matches at a formidable average of 57.18, with 2 centuries and 4 half-centuries, and a top score of 149. In ODIs, she boasts 4,209 runs in 97 matches at 46.25, with 10 hundreds—the most by any Indian woman—and a best of 136. In T20Is, she tallied 3,761 runs in 148 games, averaging 29.38, with a top score of 87.
Smriti Mandhana’s 2024 wasn’t just a year of runs and records—it was a statement of reinvention, leadership, and unshakable resolve. As she stands at the peak of her powers, crowned by Wisden and celebrated across the cricketing world, one thing is clear: the story of Smriti Mandhana is far from finished—it’s only entering its most compelling chapter.
(Quotes sourced from Wisden)
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