CHENNAI: 15 years, 99 days. T20I cap No 122. These two numbers will remain in cricketing folklore and part of trivia for decades to come. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is now the youngest male cricketer to represent India, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar who made his debut at 16 years, 205 days against Pakistan in 1989.
It could have happened sooner, in Belfast against Ireland last week or in Durham against England in the first T20I. But it is better late than never. Sooryavanshi’s childhood coach Manish Ojha too felt that it could have happened in Belfast. “We expected it against Ireland. It came as a surprise for us today. Very proud moment,” he told this daily.
The entire cricketing world was waiting for this moment. Such is the manner in which the teenager from Tajpur, a small village 12km from Bihar’s Samastipur, had stirred the imagination of the nation. This is not the first youngest.
There are quite a few more written against his name — Ranji Trophy, IPL debut, IPL century, etc. This could also be the first time the BCCI sent parents with a player where he had to use separate change rooms. With this debut, the focus shifts to the international arena where more records are under threat.
However, his approach on the field has remained the same. After a quiet over against Josh Tongue in the second T20I against England, the 15-year-old got on his knee to scoop Jofra Archer for a six. He hit another maximum before falling for a 10-ball 14. But these are the first pages. For Sooryavanshi is not a footmark, but a new chapter in Indian cricket history.