India humble Hong Kong to reach Women's T20 Asia Cup 2026 semi-final

DUBAI: Smriti Mandhana's swashbuckling century, followed by Deepti Sharma's three-wicket haul, helped India inflict a humbling 137-run defeat on Hong Kong in the seventh match of the ACC Women's T20 Asia Cup 2026 here at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Thursday.

The resounding triumph helped India become the first of the eight participating teams to qualify for the semi-final as it consolidated their position at the summit of the Group A standings with four points in two matches with a hefty net run rate of 5.775.

Although Hong Kong, who remained winless after their first two games and are at the bottom of the standings, are not out of the semi-final race as they now need to win their remaining league-stage match against Pakistan by a massive margin, besides wanting India to beat their traditional rivals.

Put into bat first, India piled up a mammoth total of 193/5 in their 20 overs, courtesy of Mandhana's record-shattering century. The left-handed opener top-scored with 124 off just 64 deliveries, studded with 14 fours and seven sixes and was thus named the Player of the Match.

She was supported by fellow opener Shafali Verma, who made with a 17-ball 28, while Richa Ghosh (11), Pratika Rawal and captain Harmanpreet Kaur, both 11, made notable contributions.

Marina Lamplough was the standout bowler for Hong Kong as she picked up two wickets for 46 runs in her four overs, while Ruchitha Venkatesh and Joyleen Kaur could claim one apiece.

Set to chase a mammoth 194-run target, Hong Kong's batting unit faltered and could yield 56 runs before getting bowled out in 16.2 overs.

Captain Natasha Miles remained the top-scorer for Hong Kong with a scratchy 15 off 27 deliveries, while all-rounder Lamplough (14) and wicketkeeper batter Yasmin Daswani (11) were the only other batters to amass double figures.

Sharma spearheaded India's ruthless bowling charge with sensational bowling figures of 3/9 in three overs, while Prema Rawat, Nandani Sharma and Shree Charani chipped in with two scalps each.