I Just Love Watching The Battle Between James Anderson And India: Smriti Mandhana

Indian women’s team opener Smriti Mandhana said that she loves to watch England pacer James Anderson bowling Indian batsmen in the ongoing Test series between England and India.

Mandhana has emerged as one of the strongest batters for India since making her debut in 2013 and recently she was seen playing for Southern Brave women in England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) Women’s Hundred tournament.

Smriti Mandhana scored 78 vs Welsh Fire in Women’s Hundred

Mandhana made 167 runs from seven innings in Women’s Hundred with her highest score for Southern Brave women was 78 against Welsh Fire women in Southampton.

I love to watch the battle between James Anderson vs India batsmen: Smriti Mandhana

Two months ago, Mandhana was part of the Indian team that played a Test match after seven years against England in Bristol. In India’s first innings, Mandhana scored 78 runs in a 167-run opening-stand with Shafali Verma in a match that ended in a draw.

Mandhana admitted that she doesn’t like watching cricket on TV but she loves the contest between Indian batters and England’s talisman bowler James Anderson.

“Well, I am not much of a cricket watcher, I do watch a lot of Test matches when India plays. That’s something I love watching. [James] Anderson bowling to you guys I just love watching that battle,” Mandhana revealed to Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin on the latter’s YouTube channel. 

“Some women cricketers love watching cricket, they can watch anything on TV, whichever cricket is going on men’s, women’s anything they will watch it. But for me, when I come out of practice, I just cannot watch playing cricket as it becomes too much for me. But yeah, the important matches I don’t miss out on and definitely Test matches I watch all of them.”

Mandhana is likely to be included in the Indian women’s squad that will tour Australia next month to play 3 ODIs and as many T20Is, with a pink-ball Test to be hosted at WACA in Perth. The tour starts on September 19 with the first ODI to be played in Sydney.

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