An Oddsworth Opinion
Who has been bowling to Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana?
The story
The Hindu reports that the Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma opening pair have just had the fastest 15-innings stretch of either career, with Shafali's strike rate climbing above 170 and Mandhana's above 150, quicker than either has scored over a run of that length before.
The Hindu · 15 October at 16:29 BSTWhat 107 innings reveal about the Smriti-Shafali opening pair | DataRead the full storyShafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana have just produced the fastest 15 innings of their careers as an opening pair, The Hindu reports, with Shafali's strike rate above 170 and Mandhana's above 150, quicker than either has scored over any stretch of that length. Our ratings put the burst in its proper light. In women's T20 batting across every side, Shafali is the best batter in the world, worth nearly 10 runs a match more than an average player, and Mandhana sits fifth, worth nearly 8. A hot streak from two batters already rated that highly is less of a surprise than the headline makes it sound.
The September fixture list
The September that produced most of the burst had a kind fixture list. Mandhana's 124 from 64 balls came against Hong Kong, Shafali's 40 not out from 15 balls came against Japan, and when Pakistan turned up Mandhana made 9 from 11 balls and Shafali 12 from 6.
That is the case against trusting 15 innings, and it holds only so far. Shafali followed the Pakistan game with half-centuries against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka inside a week, then an unbeaten hundred from 49 balls against Bangladesh, and Mandhana closed the month with 79 from 45 balls against Sri Lanka, so the speed did not leave with the smaller sides.
Career average 29.3Not out
Will it last?
Not at September's pace, and it does not need to. Over the last two years in women's T20 cricket Shafali's strike rate is 154.6 against 98.5 for top-seven batters, with Mandhana not far behind her, and that stretch runs through Shafali's June meeting with Australia and Mandhana's August games for Manchester Super Giants, company that asks harder questions than Hong Kong. The September peak sits on top of a hill that was already high.
Fifteen innings like these is the loft conversion; the last two years are the house they actually live in. Whoever bowls to them next will be looking at the same pair as September, a little slower, and with each of them averaging above 38 over those two years against 18.37 for top-seven batters, no easier to get out.
Career average 31.5