Indian women’s cricket crossed a decisive threshold in December 2025.
What unfolded so far during the home T20I series against Sri Lanka was not merely a routine bilateral sweep, but the clearest statistical and stylistic evidence yet of a full-fledged batting revolution. For probably the first time in history, India’s top four all-time run-getters in Women’s T20 Internationals are all active players Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues and Shafali Verma, a symbolic and substantive marker of generational shift.
This moment effectively closed the chapter of the Mithali Raj era in T20Is and confirmed India’s transition to a modern, power-driven, impact-first batting identity.
Read Articles Without Ads On Your IndiaSportsHub App. Download Now And Stay Updated
The defining milestone came on December 26, 2025, in Thiruvananthapuram, when Shafali Verma’s unbeaten 79 against Sri Lanka took her past Mithali Raj’s career tally of 2,364 T20I runs. That innings ensured that India’s active core occupied the top four positions on the all-time list a rare alignment in international cricket, where longevity and peak performance rarely overlap so neatly.
By the three matches of the series, Smriti Mandhana led the charts with 4,022 runs, followed by Harmanpreet Kaur (3,689), Jemimah Rodrigues (2,479) and Shafali Verma (2,366+). Mithali Raj, the former standard-bearer of Indian batting, slipped to fifth not as a diminishment of her legacy, but as confirmation that the game around her had fundamentally changed.
Smriti Mandhana: The pace-setter of a new era
Mandhana’s rise beyond 4,000 T20I runs has been the backbone of this transformation. More than the volume of runs, it is the tempo at which she scores that defines her impact. Reaching the milestone faster than Suzie Bates in terms of balls faced, Mandhana has combined consistency with relentless powerplay aggression.
Her strike rate of over 123, achieved while opening against the new ball, reflects a philosophy shift: India no longer seeks survival in the first six overs, but dominance. The influence of the Women’s Premier League is unmistakable here. Captaining Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Mandhana has honed the ability to manage risk without sacrificing intent a skill that translated seamlessly into India’s World Cup-winning campaign and subsequent T20I dominance.
Harmanpreet Kaur: The pillar of control and leadership
If Mandhana sets the pace, Harmanpreet Kaur provides structure. By December 2025, she had become the most successful captain in women’s T20I history, surpassing Meg Lanning in wins. Her role in the batting order is less about strike rate inflation and more about context management absorbing pressure when early wickets fall and finishing decisively when platforms are built.
Harmanpreet’s significance goes beyond numbers. Her partnership with head coach Amol Muzumdar has fostered a culture of accountability and tactical clarity. The 2025 ODI World Cup triumph, followed by a calm, clinical T20I series against Sri Lanka, underlined a leader comfortable delegating responsibility while remaining the emotional centre of the side .
Read Articles Without Ads On Your IndiaSportsHub App. Download Now And Stay Updated
Jemimah Rodrigues has emerged as the most tactically versatile batter in the lineup. Occupying the crucial No. 3 role, she bridges aggression and stability, maintaining a strike rate above 117 while averaging over 30. Her unbeaten 69 in the first T20I against Sri Lanka was a textbook modern innings proactive without being reckless, fluent without stalling momentum.
Rodrigues’ World Cup semi-final century earlier in 2025 was a turning point in her career. It established her as more than a facilitator, but as a match-winner capable of dictating tempo against elite attacks. In a side stacked with power-hitters, her value lies in adaptability the ability to recalibrate innings based on conditions and game state.
Shafali Verma: The embodiment of change
No player symbolises India’s batting evolution more starkly than Shafali Verma. Still just 21, Verma combines the highest strike rate among India’s leading batters with a newly acquired sense of situational awareness. Her resurgence in late 2025 followed technical adjustments playing straighter, rotating strike on slower surfaces without blunting her natural explosiveness.
Read Articles Without Ads On Your IndiaSportsHub App. Download Now And Stay Updated
Her back-to-back match-winning knocks against Sri Lanka, including the 79* that pushed her past Mithali Raj, showcased a player who has learned from setbacks. With 13 T20I fifties before the age of 21, Verma is no longer just a prodigy; she is a long-term cornerstone .
While the “Big Four” dominate headlines, Deepti Sharma’s contribution has been equally transformative. By becoming the first cricketer to achieve 1,000 runs and 150 wickets in T20Is, Deepti has redefined the value of the all-rounder in India’s setup. Her control in the middle overs allows batters to attack freely, knowing the run flow can be checked at the other end.
Statistically, the shift is clear. India’s modern batters may average slightly less than Mithali Raj did, but they score significantly faster creating higher overall impact. T20I success now rewards aggression, boundary frequency and strike rate over accumulation, and India have embraced that reality fully.
The 2025 Sri Lanka series, sealed 3–0 with chases completed inside 15 overs, was not an outlier. It was a statement of intent.
As India head toward the 2026 T20 World Cup, they do so with a batting core in its prime, supported by professional infrastructure, franchise exposure, and tactical clarity. The records broken in December 2025 were not just milestones they were confirmation that Indian women’s cricket has entered its most dominant phase yet .
