Smriti Mandhana Names The Two Toughest Bowlers She Has Faced

India opener Smriti Mandhana has named her teammate Jhulan Goswami and South Africa pacer Marizanne Kapp as the toughest bowlers she has faced. Goswami, the leading wicket-taker in women’s ODI with 236 scalps, is targeting next year’s World Cup as her swansong to culminate the 2-decade long career, while Kapp has taken 129 wickets and is one of the best bowlers going around.

Smriti Mandhana was seen batting recently in The Hundred for Southern Brave; she returned back home after scoring 167 runs from seven innings at a strike rate of 133.60, so as to spend time with her family before a long all-format tour to Australia in September-October.

Speaking on India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin’s YouTube channel, she was asked to name the bowler she finds the toughest to face.

“I think Jhulu di is always tough to face in the nets. She always turns up with fiery aggression. If I play one shot to her, she would be fuming at me. She is a scary fast bowler, who is always angry. So, she is always tough to face. Another one is Marizanne Kapp from South Africa,” Smriti Mandhana said.

We are good to go with five-six teams for women’s IPL: Smriti Mandhana

Smriti Mandhana, the number three-ranked ICC women’s T20I batter, feels that it is time for women’s IPL to be launched, although with 5-6 teams if not 8. The southpaw had plied her trade in the women’s BBL in Australia, and now in The Hundred as well.

She said that there are plenty of top quality players in the country, mixed with the overseas stars, which would make it possible for the board to organise a women’s IPL with 5-6 teams. So far, the BCCI has been conducting a short 3-team women’s T20 Challenge tournament alongside the IPL playoffs – that is, in fact, not been hosted this year.

“I think the same number of states play for men and women. The quality of the IPL has gone higher and higher as the years have passed by. What IPL is today, it was not 10 or 11 years back. The same is for women’s cricket. We have the same number of girls playing cricket. Our state-level cricket is the same [like men]. For now, we can have five or six teams. But until we don’t start, we don’t know.

“Five-six teams, we are good to go with. Eight teams, I am not sure what it would look like. But we need to start with that and then go up to eight. I have been a part of the Big Bash League for 3-4 years, and the quality there is now completely different. Cricket Australia has 40-50 players ready to play international level, and I want that to happen in India as well,” the 25-year-old added.

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