The year 2024 was a landmark one for T20I cricket, with players from around the globe lighting up the format with their exceptional performances. Among these players were the batters who scored consistent runs. This article takes a closer look at the leading run-scorers in T20Is in 2024.
1) Smriti Mandhana – 763 Runs
2024 was a standout year for Smriti Mandhana, who proved herself to be one of the most consistent performers in a format known for its volatility. Mandhana accumulated 763 runs in 23 matches, maintaining a solid average of 42. She finished as the third-leading run-scorer in the 2024 Women’s Asia Cup with 173 runs in four matches, which included two half-centuries. While her performance in the World Cup was relatively quiet, managing just 75 runs in four matches, Mandhana made a remarkable comeback in December, scoring three consecutive half-centuries in the three-match T20I series against the West Indies. She finished the series as the leading run-scorer with 193 runs from three matches. Additionally, Mandhana became the first batter to hit over 500 boundaries in T20I cricket, finishing 2024 with 104 boundaries.
2) Chamari Athapaththu – 720 Runs
Chamari Athapaththu had a remarkable year with the bat, not only for Sri Lanka but across formats, particularly in T20Is. She scored 720 runs in 21 matches, including four fifties and two centuries. Athapaththu led from the front during Sri Lanka’s T20I series against South Africa in April 2024, scoring a match-winning 73 while chasing 156 in the third T20I, which saw Sri Lanka clinch a historic 2-1 series win. In the ICC Women’s T20I Qualifier, the Sri Lankan skipper was the tournament’s top scorer with 226 runs in six matches, including a superb 102 in the final against Scotland. Athapaththu continued her stellar form in the Women’s Asia Cup, finishing as the tournament’s leading run-scorer with 302 runs, including an unbeaten 119 against Malaysia — her highest T20I score — as Sri Lanka secured their maiden Asia Cup title.
3) Esha Oza – 711 Runs
United Arab Emirates’ skipper Esha Oza had an outstanding year, amassing over 711 runs in 20 matches. Oza played a pivotal role in the Asian Cricket Council Women’s Premier Cup, where she scored an unbeaten 114 against Oman, finishing as the tournament’s leading run-scorer with 249 runs in six matches. She guided UAE to the title with her consistent performances. Oza also shone in the ICC Women’s T20I Qualifier, finishing as the tournament’s second-highest run-scorer with 189 runs in five matches, which included two fifties. She remains one of the most reliable batters for UAE.
4) Laura Wolvaardt – 673 Runs
Laura Wolvaardt led from the front for South Africa, both as a batter and a captain. She accumulated 673 runs in 19 matches, averaging nearly 40, with three fifties and one century. Wolvaardt’s year started with a brilliant century against Sri Lanka in the first T20I of their home series, where she scored 102 off 63 balls, earning the Player of the Match award. She followed up with a half-century and finished the series as the leading run-scorer with 158 runs from two innings. Wolvaardt’s remarkable year continued in the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup, where she topped the run charts with 223 runs in six innings, including two half-centuries. Her performances were key to South Africa’s run to the final, where they finished as runners-up.
5) Gaby Lewis – 606 Runs
The newly appointed Irish skipper, Gaby Lewis, scored 606 runs in 18 matches in 2024, which included three fifties and one century. Lewis was Ireland’s top run-scorer in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier, where she amassed 151 runs in five innings, including a fifty. In the home series against Sri Lanka in August 2024, Lewis hit 119 in the second T20I, which helped secure Ireland’s win over Sri Lanka and marked her highest individual score in the format. Throughout the year, Lewis consistently provided the Irish side with valuable runs in T20Is.
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