Vice-captain Smriti Mandhana opened the innings for India in their second Group A match of the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 on Thursday (September 3) and scored 124 runs off 64 balls. During her stay at the crease, the 30-year-old left-handed top-order batter from Sangli in Maharashtra hammered 14 fours and seven sixes.
Mandhana’s seven maximums not only helped India post a total of 193/5 against Hong Kong China at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, but also helped her break Harmanpreet Kaur’s record for the most sixes by an Indian in women’s T20Is.
Harmanpreet, who is leading India in the ongoing eight-team tournament in Dubai, has slammed 89 sixes in 204 WT20Is. Mandhana, on the other hand, now has 95 sixes to her name in 173 matches.
Most sixes
for India in WT20Is
| PLAYER | TIME SPAN | MATCHES | RUNS | BEST SCORE | AVERAGE | 100 | 50 | FOURS | SIXES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smriti Mandhana | 2013-2026 | 173 | 4681 | 124 | 30.79 | 2 | 35 | 632 | 95 |
| Harmanpreet Kaur | 2009-2026 | 204 | 4231 | 103 | 30 | 1 | 18 | 406 | 89 |
| Shafali Verma | 2019-2026 | 113 | 2993 | 81 | 28.23 | 0 | 19 | 387 | 87 |
| Richa Ghosh | 2020-2026 | 90 | 1344 | 64* | 26.35 | 0 | 2 | 155 | 46 |
| Jemimah Rodrigues | 2018-2026 | 131 | 2824 | 76 | 29.41 | 0 | 16 | 319 | 28 |
In the list of players with the most sixes for India in WT20Is, Mandhana and Harmanpreet are followed by Shafali Verma (87) and Richa Ghosh (46).
The world record for the most sixes in WT20Is is jointly held by New Zealand’s Sophie Devine and West Indies’ Deandra Dottin. Both Devine and Dottin have smashed 134 sixes so far.
Most sixes in WT20Is
| PLAYER | COUNTRY | TIME SPAN | MATCHES | RUNS | BEST SCORE | 100 | 50 | SIXES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sophie Devine | New Zealand | 2006-2026 | 158 | 3817 | 105 | 1 | 24 | 134 |
| Deandra Dottin | West Indies/Barbados | 2008-2026 | 154 | 3228 | 112* | 2 | 14 | 134+ |
| Chamari Athapaththu | Sri Lanka | 2009-2026 | 167 | 4094 | 119* | 4 | 14 | 109 |
| Smriti Mandhana | India | 2013-2026 | 173 | 4681 | 124 | 2 | 35 | 95 |
| Harmanpreet Kaur | India | 2009-2026 | 204 | 4231 | 103 | 1 | 18 | 89+ |
| Shafali Verma | India | 2019-2026 | 113 | 2993 | 81 | 0 | 19 | 87 |
If Mandhana manages to hit five more sixes in India’s upcoming matches in the Women’s Asia Cup 2026, she will become the first Indian to smash 100 sixes in WT20Is. As of now, only three players have managed to hit 100-plus sixes in the 20-over format of the game.
In the match against Hong Kong China, Mandhana smashed her first six on the fifth ball of the 11th over, bowled by Iqra Sahar. The maximum helped Mandhana complete her half-century off 40 balls.
She smashed her second six on the fourth ball of the 12th over, bowled by Kary Chan, and then hit two maximums off Maryam Bibi in the 14th over, on the fourth and sixth balls.
In the 18th over of India’s innings, bowled by Ruchitha Venkatesh, Mandhana smashed a hat-trick of sixes off the second, third and fourth balls.
Had she managed to hit one more six on Thursday, she would have equalled Harmanpreet’s record for the most sixes by an Indian in a single WT20I innings.
Harmanpreet had hammered eight sixes during her 103-run knock against New Zealand in the 2018 Women’s T20 World Cup match in Providence.
