1st WT20I: India survive Zimbabwe scare in Raipur
What's the story
Smriti Mandhana's first WT20I as India's full-time captain could have been marred by a historic upset from Zimbabwe. The Women in Blue held their nerves to chase down a modest 115 in 15.4 overs at Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, Raipur. Nyasha Gwanzura triggered their top-order collapse, reducing the hosts to a precarious 19/4. Niki Prasad and Deepti Sharma then got India home.
Innings
How the Zimbabwe innings panned out
Zimbabwe, asked to bat, had a sluggish start, losing Beloved Biza in the first over.
Although Kelis Ndhlovu and Modester Mupachikwa steadied the ship with a 53-run stand, the run rate dipped.
After Ndhlovu's dismissal, Zimbabwe were down to 82/3 in 15 overs.
While Sharne Mayers returned unbeaten on 43 (33), Nandani Sharma bagged incredible returns of 4-0-11-2.
Zimbabwe reached 114/5 in 20 overs.
Chase
India falter early in the chase
In what should have been a straightforward chase, India were 14/0 after the first over.
However, Nyasha Gwanzura dismissed Mandhana and Anushka Sharma in the second over to add turbulence.
In the next over, former skipper Harmanpreet Kaur fell to Michelle Mavunga. Gwanzura then removed the dangerous Shafali Verma, leaving India at 19/4.
Deepti and Niki then survived the rest of the Powerplay.
Information
Deepti, Niki get India home
After the fourth over, Deepti and Niki defused further threat with an 82-run stand. Olinder Chare then ended Deepti's bid for a half-century, as the latter departed for 49 off 37 balls (8 fours). India lost Richa Ghosh too, but India were home with Niki's unbeaten 39 (35).
Information
Deepti races to 1,355 WT20I runs
According to Cricinfo, Deepti has now raced to 1,355 runs from 158 WT20Is at an average of 22.58. She was wicketless against Zimbabwe but bowled an economical three-over spell (3-0-20-0). The star all-rounder is the highest wicket-taker in WT20Is (189).
Numbers
A look at Gwanzura's numbers
Nyasha Gwanzura was the pick of Zimbabwe's bowlers, taking 3/18 in three overs.
The spin-bowling all-rounder raced to 25 wickets from 41 WT20Is at an average of 20.96. The tally includes an economy rate of 6.83 and the best figures of 3/4.
Gwanzura now has 10 wickets from 14 WT20Is at an average of 32.9 in 2026.
Milestone
Mandhana completes 650 WT20I fours
Mandhana fell for 9 off 6 balls (2 fours) in her first WT20I as India's full-time captain. However, she unlocked an achievement.
Mandhana became the first-ever player to complete 650 fours in the format.
The Indian captain is followed by Sri Lanka's Chamari Athapaththu (563). New Zealand's Suzie Bates is the only other batter with 500-plus fours (525) in the format.
Numbers
Other notable numbers
Ahead of the toss, Niki Prasad received her debut WT20I cap. She now has the third-highest individual score on WT20I debut for India, according to Cricbuzz.
Niki and Deepti added 82 runs, now the highest stand for the fifth wicket or lower for India in WT20Is.
Meanwhile, India have extended their winning streak in WT20Is to nine matches.