Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur scripted twin records during India’s final Group B match against Ireland Women in the T20 World Cup at St George’s Park in Gqeberha.
On taking the field at toss, before the start of the match against Ireland, Harmanpreet became the first player in the world – male or female – to appear in 150 matches in the T20I format.
Another rare feat by Harmanpreet Kaur
Harmanpreet has appeared in all editions of the T20 World Cup since 2009, scoring over 500 runs from 34 games with a century and a half-century.
“It means a lot, I got an emotional message from my teammates. Thanks to BCCI and ICC, we are able to play so many games,” Harmanpreet said at the toss when reminded of the milestone she reached.
The second-best in women’s cricket in the format is New Zealand’s Suzie Bates, who appeared in 143 matches, and the next best by an Indian is Smriti Mandhana, with 115 appearances. In men’s cricket, Rohit stands ahead with 148 appearances for India since his debut in the format in 2007.
Women’s captain beats Men’s captain in the most T20I runs race
Kaur on Monday scripted a magnificent piece of history in world cricket, beating Indian men’s team captain, Rohit Sharma, to the elusive feat.
Harmanpreet Kaur became the first Indian woman to record 3000 T20I runs. The Indian captain reached the landmark when she reached eight runs off 10 deliveries.
The 33-year-old is the fourth woman to achieve the feat behind Suzie Bates, Meg Lanning , and Stafanie Taylor. Harmanpreet is the third Indian to scale the mark behind Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Harmanpreet also holds the record for the highest T20I score (103) by an Indian woman. She is also India’s leading six-hitter in WT20Is, having hit over 70 maximums.
Harmanpreet was recently acquired by Mumbai Indians for the inaugural Women’s Premier League. The five-team tournament will commence in India on March 4.
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