Top 5 batters with most hundreds for India in Women's ODIs ft. Smriti Mandhana

India beat New Zealand 2-1 in a three-match ODI series, courtesy of a match-winning hundred from Smriti Mandhana in the third ODI on October 29. The win might not have done much to allay their disappointment from the early exit at the recently concluded T20 World Cup. However, it is still an important win and a boost of confidence for this Indian team, who aim to look ahead.

Smriti Mandhana made history with her hundred in the third ODI, becoming the first Indian female to score eight hundreds in ODI cricket. Let's now look at the other four players who form the top five Indian players with the most hundreds in ODIs.

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#5 Thirush Kamini - 2 Hundreds

Former Indian and Tamil Nadu opener Thirush Kamini has the fifth-most hundreds in ODI cricket for the Indian team, a record she shares with Jaya Sharma. The 34-year-old scored two hundreds in an ODI career that spanned 39 matches and scored 825 runs at an average of 25.78.

Her maiden ODI hundred came in India's win over the West Indies in the 2013 ODI World Cup. She stroked a 146-ball 100 to power India to a total of 284/6 in the first innings. India won that match comfortably and Thirush Kamini was rightfully awarded the POTM award.

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#4 Punam Raut - 3 Hundreds

Punam Raut was one of India's most consistent batters.

Punam Raut is one of the legends of Indian women's cricket and was one of the most successful batters the team had throughout her career. She scored nearly 2300 runs in 73 ODIs, averaging close to 35 in her career. While she's still active in domestic cricket, she hasn't been in the reckoning for the national team.

She has scored three hundreds in her ODI career. The first came against Ireland in a quadrangular series against South Africa in the same match where Deepti Sharma, her opening partner, smashed a 160-ball 188. Her second and arguably most impressive one was a 136-ball 106 against Australia in the 2017 World Cup, despite coming in a losing cause.

Her final hundred was an unbeaten 104* against South Africa that came in a losing cause.

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#3 Harmanpreet Kaur - 6 Hundreds

The current Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur is one of the best batters India has ever produced. The aggressive 35-year-old batter has scored a whopping 3648 runs in 135 ODIs for India, amassing six hundreds to her name.

The best of the lot is undoubtedly Harmanpreet's whirlwind 171* against Australia which won India the semi-final of the 2017 ODI World Cup. In arguably one of Indian cricket's proudest moments, Harmanpreet smashed 115-ball 171 in a rain-curtailed match. She helped India to 281/4 in just 42 overs as they reached the final and gave them a real shot at winning the World Cup.

That innings remains the highest individual score by a No.4 in the history of ODIs in Women's cricket.

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#2 Mithali Raj - 7 Hundreds

Mithali Raj has one of the highest averages in ODI cricket.

Arguably the best player India ever produced, Mithali Raj was the face of the Indian women's team till her retirement. She had a glorious international career that spanned 18 years.

Mithali played 232 ODIs in her career, scoring more than 7800 runs, averaging a stellar 50.68. She scored 64 half-centuries in her ODI career, but only seven hundreds.

Three of those hundreds came against Sri Lanka, a team she loved playing against. Mithali averaged a mind-blowing 157.57 against Sri Lanka in 28 matches, making her highest ODI score of 125* against them in 2018. However, unfortunately for the former Indian captain, it came for a losing cause.

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#1 Smriti Mandhana - 8 Hundreds

Smriti Mandhana is one of the brightest talents India has produced in the last decade or so and could carry this Indian team to great heights in the future. The southpaw is the current Indian vice-captain and at 28 years old. She has a phenomenal record in ODI cricket, scoring 3690 runs in 88 matches, averaging a stellar 45.00.

She recently scored her eighth ODI hundred in the decider of a three-match ODI series against New Zealand. After a good bowling effort, India were set a target of 233 in 50 overs. Smriti Mandhana's 100 set the platform for the chase, also helping her overtake Mithali Raj to become the player with the most ODI hundreds for India.