Shafali Verma has created history in women’s T20Is, becoming the highest run-scorer in a calendar year. The India opener needed just 10 runs in the Asian Games 2026 final against Sri Lanka to move past South African star Laura Wolvaardt’s record of 824 runs. Shafali reached the mark with her 10th run off the seventh ball she faced.

The final at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin is Shafali’s 24th T20I of 2026. She now has 825 runs to her name and no other batter has scored more runs in women’s T20Is in a single calendar year.

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Most runs in WT20I in a single calender year

PLAYER COUNTRY MATCHES RUNS BEST SCORE 100 50 YEAR
Shafali Verma India 24* 825* 100* 1 7 2026
Laura Wolvaardt South Africa 24 824 126* 2 4 2026
Natasha Miles Hong Kong 27 800 100* 1 6 2026
Esha Oza UAE 22 779 113 2 3 2025
Yasmin Daswani Hong Kong 22 779 84* 0 5 2026
Smriti Mandhana India 23 763 77 0 8 2024
Chamari Athapaththu Sri Lanka 22* 721 106* 1 2 2026
Chamari Athapaththu Sri Lanka 21 720 119* 2 4 2024
Esha Oza UAE 20 711 114* 1 4 2024
Nannapat Koncharoenkai Thailand 25 707 73 0 4 2026

Wolvaardt is second on the list, while Hong Kong’s Natasha Miles, UAE’s Esha Oza and Hong Kong’s Yasmin Daswani also feature among the leading run-scorers in a calendar year.

Shafali had already enjoyed a remarkable year before the final. In her first 23 T20Is of 2026, she scored seven fifties and a century for India.

She also had a chance to create another record in the final. A fifty against Sri Lanka would have made her the first player to score nine 50-plus knocks in women’s T20Is in a single calendar year.

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The 22-year-old has been in excellent touch in recent matches. In her last four T20Is before the final, she scored two half-centuries and a century. She also produced a quick unbeaten 40 off 15 balls against Japan in India’s quarter-final at the Asian Games.

Shafali Verma's WT20I runs in 2026

RUNS BALLS 4s 6s STRIKE RATE AGAINST VENUE DATE
21 11 1 2 190.9 Australia Sydney February 15
29 23 5 0 126.08 Australia Canberra February 19
7 6 1 0 116.66 Australia Adelaide February 21
34 20 5 1 170 Australia Durban April 17
57 38 7 2 150 South Africa Durban April 19
64 46 8 2 139.13 South Africa Johannesburg April 22
9 9 0 1 100 South Africa Johannesburg April 25
4 5 0 0 80 South Africa Benoni April 27
2 3 0 0 66.66 England Chelmsford May 28
22 14 5 0 157.14 England Bristol May 30
11 6 2 0 183.33 England Taunton June 2
6 5 0 1 120 Pakistan Birmingham June 14
55 38 10 0 144.73 Netherlands Leeds June 17
31 15 4 1 206.66 South Africa Manchester June 21
53 34 8 1 155.88 Bangladesh Manchester June 25
34 26 3 2 130.76 Australia Lord’s June 28
64 36 8 3 177.77 Thailand Dubai August 30
28 17 3 2 164.7 Hong Kong, China Dubai September 3
12 6 1 1 200 Pakistan Dubai September 5
64 40 7 3 160 Bangladesh Dubai September 10
68 39 9 2 174.35 Sri Lanka Dubai September 13
40* 15 6 2 266.66 Japan Nisshin September 18
100* 49 3 9 204.08 Bangladesh Nisshin September 20
10* 7 1 0 170.00 Sri Lanka Nisshin September 22

Smriti Mandhana has also been among the runs for India. She was within touching distance of another major milestone, needing 13 runs against Sri Lanka to become the first player to complete 11,000 runs in women’s international cricket.