Smriti Mandhana Becomes Only Indian in TIME100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026

Smriti Mandhana has emerged as one of the biggest stars in the world cricket as In a landmark achievement for the Indian sports, the Indian women’s cricket vice-captain Smriti Mandhana has been named in to the TIME100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026 list. She is the only Indian to feature in this prestigious global ranking and joined the legends from football, basketball, tennis, and cricket.

Smriti Mandhana Earns The Place in TIME100 Sports 2026

TIME magazine’s annual list recognizes the athletes, coaches, executives, investors and advocates who are shaping the future of sports worldwide.

In the 2026 edition, Mandhana stands alongside with the icons such as the Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, LeBron James, Carlos Alcaraz and Temba Bavuma.

Her inclusion showcases the growing recognition of the women’s cricket on the world stage.

Why Was Smriti Mandhana Selected?

TIME has highlighted the several remarkable achievements that have defined Mandhana’s career in the recent years.

She became the first Indian woman to score a double century in a domestic one-day match and the first Indian woman cricketer to register the centuries in all three international formats such as Test, ODI, and T20I cricket.

Mandhana also holds the joint record for the most centuries in the women’s international cricket with total 17 international hundreds.

Her consistent performances have made her one of the most successful batters in the modern era of the women’s cricket.

Record-Breaking Achievements

Over the last few years for Mandhana’s have been exceptional. She became the first woman cricketer to score more than 1,000 ODI runs in a single calendar year.

In the year 2024, she set the record for the highest number of the international runs scored by a woman across the all formats in a single year.

Remarkably, she surpassed her own record again in the year 2025 and showcased the extraordinary consistency at the highest level.

Earlier in the year 2026, Mandhana also became the India’s highest run-scorer in T20 Internationals across both men’s and women’s cricket.

Leadership Success in International and Franchise Cricket

Apart from the personal milestones, Smriti Mandhana has played the vital leadership role in team success.

She captained the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and helped her team to won two Women’s Premier League (WPL) titles in the year 2024 and 2026.

She served as the vice-captain when India just won the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup last year in Mumbai.

In this competition she finished with India’s highest run-scorer with 434 runs at the highest level of the game.

Global Sports Icons To Featured in the TIME100 Sports 2026

Some of the prominent name are

• LeBron James (Basketball)
• Lionel Messi (Football)
• Cristiano Ronaldo (Football)
• Carlos Alcaraz (Tennis)
• Eileen Gu Freestyle (Skiing)
• Temba Bavuma (Cricket)
• Smriti Mandhana (Cricket)

Important Facts

• Smriti Mandhana is the only Indian to feature into the TIME100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026.
• She is the current vice-captain of the Indian Women’s Cricket Team.
• She became the first Indian woman to score a double century in a domestic one-day match.
• She is the first Indian woman to score centuries in all the three international formats.
• Mandhana jointly holds the record for most centuries in women’s international cricket (17).
• She captained the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and won two WPL titles in 2024 and 2026.
• She was vice-captain of the India’s ICC Women’s World Cup-winning team in the year 2025.
• She received the BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year Award in 2025.