Raj becomes first Indian woman past 10,000 runs

New Delhi - Raj, 38, who retired from the T20 format in 2019, has accumulated 6,974 runs in 212 ODIs since making her debut in 1999

Mithali Raj became the first Indian woman cricketer to pass 10,000 international runs on Friday, as she made 36 in a one-day match against South Africa.

Raj’s knock took her total to 10,001 runs across three formats, before she fell to the next ball from Anne Bosch in the third of five ODIs in Lucknow.

Sachin Tendulkar, the world’s leading run-scorer in men’s cricket, congratulated Raj, saying on Twitter: “Terrific achievement... Keep going strong!”

England’s Charlotte Edwards, who quit international cricket in 2016, remains the leading scorer in the women’s game, with 10,273 runs in Tests, ODIs and Twenty20 matches.

Raj, 38, who retired from the T20 format in 2019, has accumulated 6,974 runs in 212 ODIs since making her debut in 1999.

She led India to the finals of the 2017 Women’s Cricket World Cup only to lose the final to hosts England.

India’s women’s team will play a one-off Test in England later this year, six years after playing their last five-day game in 2014