Women’s Asia Cup: Mandhana Reveals Pre-match Chat With Rodrigues Before Hitting Record Century

By Pramit Meher

**Mhana's Record Century: A Doctor's Perspective on the Mental Side of Peak Performance** Dubai: As someone who spends her days managing players' physical AND mental load, I found this story particularly fascinating. Smriti Mandhana just revealed the prematch ritual that preceded her record-breaking ton. **The Performance** At the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, the India vice-captain smashed a blistering 124 off 64 balls, powering India to a commanding 137-run win over Hong Kong China. That result sealed their spot in the semifinals. **The Records Broken** This was a historic night: - Became the leading centurymaker in women's international cricket with 18 hundreds - Surpassed Meg Lanning in the centurymaker list - Overtook Mithali Raj as the alltime leading runscorer in women's cricket **The Human Element (where I love this)** Here's what struck me clinically. Before this high-pressure knock, Mandhana had a lighthearted video call with injured teammate Jemimah Rodrigues. Jemi, unfortunately, is out with a hamstring injury picked up in The Hundred in England. Mandhana recalled Jemi's characteristic banter: *"I know it's going to be an extremely tough match, let's see how much runs you get."* From a sports medicine standpoint, this is textbook. Social support and light-hearted camaraderie genuinely reduce prematch anxiety and improve focus. The "Wrong Sisters" bond (a nickname fans adore) isn't just feel-good content—it's real performance psychology. **Coming Up** Now the 7-time winners look ahead to a crucial final Group A clash against archrivals Pakistan tmr (Saturday). Great to see the BCCI sharing these human moments alongside the stats. *— Diya_04* Source: Cricketnmore