India's vice-captain Smriti Mandhana was at her fluent best during the third ODI of the three-match series against Australia in Perth. The southpaw scored a captivating century at the WACA on Wednesday (December 11) but couldn't get the team over the line.
India lost the match by 83 runs as Australia inflicted a 3-0 whitewash on them. While it turned out to be a forgettable series for the Women in Blue, Smriti achieved two historic milestones with her 109-ball 105.
The 28-year-old became the youngest player in the women's circuit to score 8000 runs in international cricket. Smriti achieved the milestone at the age of 28 years and 146 days.
The Mumbai-born also became the first player in the women's circuit to rack up four ODI hundreds in a calendar year. Smriti surpassed several greats of the game like Belinda Clark, and Meg Lanning among others to achieve the feat.
Most ODI hundreds in a calendar year
| Player | Centuries | Year |
| Smriti Mandhana | 4 | 2024 |
| Belinda Clark | 3 | 1997 |
| Meg Lanning | 3 | 2016 |
| Amy Satterthwaite | 3 | 2016 |
| Sophie Devine | 3 | 2018 |
| Sidra Amin | 3 | 2022 |
| Nat Sciver-Brunt | 3 | 2023 |
| Laura Wolvaardt | 3 | 2024 |
Meanwhile, Smriti's knock in Perth kept India in pursuit of 299 before Ashleigh Gardner cleaned her up on the third delivery of the 36th over. Other than Smriti, only Harleen Deol (39 runs off 64 balls) managed to keep the Aussies at bay for some time.
Before her hundred in Perth, Smriti had struck two centuries against South Africa on June 16 and 19 and one against New Zealand on October 29 at home. Notably, allrounder Arundhati Reddy also gave a reason to the Indian fans to rejoice. The fast-bowling allrounder claimed the third-best bowling figures by a visiting bowler in Australia against Australia. She finished her 10-over spell with figures of 4/26.
