Twin centuries by Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur helped India defeat West Indies by a comprehensive 155-run margin in Hamilton to climb to the top of the World Cup points table on Saturday.

With the call growing for the team’s “seniors to step up” after the loss to New Zealand in their previous match, Mandhana (123 off 119) and Harmanpreet (109 off 107) stitched together a record 184-run stand for the fourth wicket at Seddon Park.

Their association propelled India to 317/8, their best in World Cups. The West Indies put up a good fight through a brisk century opening stand, but Meghna Singh and Sneh Rana triggered a sensational collapse. The Windies lost six wickets for 34 runs to surrender the advantage.

The West Indies had a good chance of extending their winning streak after galloping to 50 in five overs, 81 in the wicketless powerplay, and 100 in just 12 overs.

As the Caribbeans slumped to 114 for four in the 19th over, Pooja Vastrakar (1/21) and Rajeshwari Gayakwad (1/24) removed Shemaine Campbelle (11) and Chinelle Henry (7). Gayakwad and Rana then combined to run out Aaliyah Alleyne (4).

Jhulan Goswami (1/43) got rid of Anisa Mohammed (2) to become the all-time highest wicket-taker in the women's World Cup with 40 wickets in her kitty.

Captain Mithali Raj also reached a milestone on Saturday by leading in most matches in the World Cup, surpassing Australian Belinda Clark.

Mithali, 39, has now led in 24 World Cup games, claiming 14 victories, 8 losses and one no result.

Mandhana later said Harmanpreet is at her best when she has her back to the wall. While Mandhana smashed her fifth ODI hundred, Harmanpreet recorded her fourth and the first since the epic 171 not out against Australia in the 2017 World Cup.

“From the outset, I feel when her back is towards the wall, that’s when she comes out with her best and that’s something which I’ve seen,” Smriti, who shared her Player-of-the-Match award with Harmanpreet, said at the post-match media interaction.

“Her work ethic is really up there in the whole team. She keeps going even if she does not get the results. World Cups are the place where she comes good.

“She is a crucial part of our middle order. Happy she’s come back well. She has been batting well at practice. We were always confident that she would score runs. Happy that she scored back-to-back fifties. It will give her good confidence going forward,” Smriti remarked.

Written with agency inputs