Smriti Mandhana is all set to begin a new chapter in her international cricket career as she leads India for the first time as full-time T20I captain. The opening match of the T20I series against Zimbabwe will be played today at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium in Raipur. Mandhana will also have a historic milestone in sight, one that no male or female cricketer has achieved so far.

BCCI appointed the 30-year-old Mandhana as India's new full-time T20I captain after Harmanpreet Kaur stepped down from the role. Mandhana made her international debut in 2013 and has since established herself as one of the leading batters in women's cricket.

With more than 300 international appearances to her name, she has already achieved several milestones and now has the opportunity to add another major record to her list of accomplishments.

Smriti Mandhana On Verge Of 5,000 T20I Runs

Smriti Mandhana is closing in on the landmark of 5,000 runs in T20 Internationals. If she reaches the figure, she will become the first cricketer in the history of the game, across men's and women's cricket, to achieve the feat.

She has featured in 179 T20I matches, scoring 4,867 runs in 172 innings. Her record includes two centuries and 37 half-centuries. With 133 runs still required to reach the 5,000-run mark, the Zimbabwe series presents her with an opportunity to move closer to the historic milestone.

Who Is Highest Run-Scorer In Men's T20Is?

Pakistan's Babar Azam leads the list of men's T20I run-scorers with 4,596 runs in 136 innings. England's Jos Buttler is next with 4,384 runs.

Former India captains Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli occupy the third and fourth positions, respectively. Rohit has scored 4,231 runs, while Kohli has accumulated 4,188 runs in the format. Both players have retired from T20 Internationals.

Smriti Mandhana (Captain), Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Minnu Mani, Shafali Verma, Richa Ghosh (Wicketkeeper), Nandani Sharma, Anushka Sharma, Kranti Gaur, Moni Kalita, Sri Charani, Nikki Prasad, Kamalini (Wicketkeeper) and Prema Rawat.