Fourteen-year-old batting sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi left both the UAE bowlers and the match presenters in awe on Friday, delivering what one commentator jokingly called a set of “philosophy lessons” shortly after smashing a record-matching 32-ball T20 century on his India A debut at the Rising Stars Asia Cup, held at the West End Park International Cricket Stadium.
Earlier in the day, the soft-spoken teenager had turned down selfie requests to stay mentally locked in and that focus paid off spectacularly. He tore into the UAE attack with a breathtaking 144 off just 42 balls, hammering 15 sixes and 11 fours, and powering India A to a towering 297/4. India went on to win by 148 runs, but it was Suryavanshi’s composure as a batter and as a speaker that stole the show. A commentator, clearly entertained, asked: “Did we ever imagine getting philosophy lessons from a 14-year-old?”
During the innings break, Suryavanshi spoke about his knock, reflecting on his journey till now.
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“Fans hai toh support ke liye aaye hai. Kuch pressure nahi feel hota. Aur ek baar jab ground ke andar jao toh sab bahar ka kuch sunai nahi deta (Fans come to support us. I don’t feel any pressure. And once you step onto the ground, you don’t hear anything from outside),” he said
“Jab main peeche dekhta hoon toh pata chalta hai ye sab life ki journey hai. Main tab kahan khelta tha aur ab kahan khelta hoon (When I look back, I realise all of this is a part of life’s journey. Where I used to play then, and where I play now)… I am very grateful.”
He gave credit to his father and mentioned that it was his decisions which helped me perform well on the ground.
“Main credit apne papa ko dena chahunga. Unhone mujhe bachpan se bohot strictly rakha. Tab lagta tha ki itne strict kyun hain, lekin ab samajh aata hai. Uska effect ground pe dikhta hai — main distract nahi hota (I want to give credit to my father. He kept me very disciplined from childhood. Back then, I used to wonder why he was so strict, but now I understand. Its impact shows on the field — I don’t get distracted).”
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Suryavanshi’s explosive ton put him in the company of Rishabh Pant as the joint-second-fastest Indian to score a T20 hundred, doing it in 32 balls. In the list of fastest T20 hundreds for Indians, only Urvil Patel and Abhishek Sharma have done it quicker with 28 balls, while the world record belongs to Sahil Chauhan of Estonia, who brought up a 27-ball century.
At 14 years and 232 days, Suryavanshi also became the youngest player ever to score a hundred for any men’s national representative team. Even more astonishing, he is now the only cricketer in history with two T20 centuries in 35 balls or fewer, having already notched a 35-ball IPL hundred a knock that made him the youngest centurion in league history.
Friday’s masterpiece could have ended in the first ball, when UAE captain Alishan Sharafu dropped a regulation catch, but the teen capitalised fully, briefly threatening to topple Tilak Varma’s Indian T20 record and even Chris Gayle’s global landmark before being caught in the deep for a breathtaking 144. As he walked off, the India A camp stood in acknowledgment of the moment cognizant they had most likely just witnessed the emergence of cricket’s newest wunderkind and possibly its youngest on-air philosopher.
