SportsPosted at: Oct 26 2026 6:18PM


I tried a lot: Deepti Sharma on breaking her ODI century drought

New Delhi, Oct 26 (UNI) Deepti Sharma’s second ODI century came after a gap of nine years and five months, but the India all-rounder never lost faith in her ability to reach the milestone again.
The 29-year-old ended the long wait with an unbeaten 106 against Zimbabwe in Vadodara on Sunday, helping India secure a 121-run victory and clinch the three-match series.
Deepti’s previous ODI hundred was the remarkable 188 she scored against Ireland in May 2017. Since then, she had gone 3,450 days without reaching three figures in the format before finally achieving the feat at Kotambi Stadium in Baroda.
Reflecting on her innings, Deepti said she had continued to work towards another century and trusted that her efforts would eventually pay off.
“I tried a lot, but it took a lot of time to reach. But I believed in my hard work that I would reach (another century) sooner or later,” Deepti said after the match.
She added that her priority during the innings was to build a partnership and strengthen India’s position rather than focus solely on reaching a hundred.
“I think more than 100 was in my mind. How can we build a partnership in that situation? That was the mindset. And obviously, 100 is special. It feels good to reach after such a long time.
“And I am grateful that I was able to achieve that on the ground of Baroda.”
Deepti’s effort came alongside another century from former India captain Harmanpreet Kaur, who scored 126 as the hosts finished with 328/6 in their allotted 50 overs.
Zimbabwe were unable to match that total, eventually being bowled out for 207 in the penultimate over. However, Deepti was keen to acknowledge the visitors’ efforts, saying they had put up a fight in both matches.
“They played (well) in the first ODI as well,” Deepti noted.
“They have good batters in their team as well. We cannot say that they are a weak team or play differently. But they gave us a fight.
“We knew that we could dismiss them given our bowling unit. That was the mindset. And I think all the bowlers did a good job. In fact, the whole team gave a good performance.”
India had won the opening ODI by nine wickets before sealing the series with Sunday's comprehensive win. The two teams will meet again in Vadodara on Wednesday for the third and final match.
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