Smriti Mandhana battled flu to deliver final knock

Smriti Mandhana truly plays in a league of her own. Always composed, she masks any pressure with an effortless calm. On Thursday night at the BCA Stadium in Vadodara, this trait was on full display as the lefthander smashed a blistering 87 off 41 balls to steer Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to a six-wicket victory over Delhi Capitals in the Women’s Premier League (WPL) final, securing their second title.

Even while battling a flu, Mandhana refused to let it show. She stepped up as captain and ensured nothing disrupted her chase towards lifting the trophy. RCB head coach Malolan Rangarajan was full of admiration for her performance, calling it one of her finest knocks and revealing the extent of her illness. He emphasised how she played through the severe flu and high fever without ever letting it affect her. “Smriti saved one of her best innings for the final. The reason why I say that is, yes, she has been in very good form in the last 12 months, but the way she batted in the final was inhuman.

It was so classy, so elegant. It didn’t look like a chase that was 200 the way she batted,” Rangarajan said. “Smriti was unwell with a high fever, but she did not even show it. That’s the person she is. When I spoke to her this afternoon, she said, ‘No problem, I will be there.’ So, that’s her when it comes to her work,” the coach added. Smriti also claimed the Orange Cap for the very first time, finishing the season with an impressive 377 runs across nine innings.