Smriti Mandhana named the ICC Women's ODI Cricketer of the Year

Smriti Mandhana of the Indian women's cricket team has been named the ICC women's ODI cricketer of the year for 2021. Mandhana scored 855 runs in 22 internationals, averaging 38.86 and including one century and five half-centuries.

Despite India's challenging year in 2021, Mandhana's stock has risen this year. Mandhana was instrumental in both of India's victories in the limited-overs series against South Africa, which saw India win just two of eight matches at home. She hit 80 not out as India chased down 158 in the second ODI to help them tie the series, and she hit 48 not out in the final T20I to help India win.

Mandhana scored 78 runs in the first innings of the one-off Test against England, which ended in a tie. In India's lone victory in the ODI series, she hit a crucial 49. Her 15-ball 29 and 50 in the T20I series, however, were in vain as India lost both matches and the series 2-1.

Mandhana was in fine form throughout the series against Australia, beginning with an ODI series in which she hit 86 in the second game. She was named Player of the Match after scoring a stunning century in the lone Test (her first of her career). In the final T20I, she hit her second T20I fifty of the year, but India fell short and lost the series 2-0.

In India's pink-ball Test debut, Smriti Mandhana scored a century:

Mandhana smashed her maiden century in the longest format, making India's first-ever pink-ball Test even more memorable. To begin, the left-hander played her natural game and scored a run-a-ball half-century while playing under the lights with prudence.

Mandhana was apprehended on 80, but was granted a reprieve after Ellyse Perry stepped out of line. She took advantage of the opportunity, scoring her first Test century with a boundary. After putting India in a solid position, her innings came to an end at 127. Mandhana was named Player of the Match after the match finished in a tie.