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    STUMP VISION                                                              JULY 17, 2026    |  The Indian Eye 43

                             The Boy Who Knew No Fear:

              One Swing That Announced Cricket’s

                                                  Next Generation

              By making his international debut at 15 years and 99 days, Sooryavanshi became the second-youngest player

                       from a Full Member nation to play men’s international cricket, behind Pakistan’s Hasan Raza

                                                                                                                  a strong impression during practice
                                                                                                                  sessions. Morkel described his per-
                                                                                                                  formances in the nets as smooth and
                                                                                                                  highly impressive. When the oppor-
                                                                                                                  tunity finally arrived in Manchester,
                                                                                                                  Sooryavanshi looked completely at
                                                                                                                  home on the biggest stage.
                                                                                                                      The  significance  of  his  debut
                                                                                                                  stretches beyond Indian cricket. By
                                                                                                                  making  his  international  debut  at
                                                                                                                  15 years and 99 days, Sooryavanshi
                      ARCHAN MEHTA                                                                                became the second-youngest player
                                                                                                                  from a Full Member nation to play
                 ome debuts begin quietly. Vai-                                                                   men’s international cricket, behind
                 bhav Sooryavanshi’s began with                                                                   Pakistan’s Hasan Raza. He joins an
            Sa six that shook Old Trafford.                                                                       exclusive list that includes names such
                Under grey Manchester skies,                                                                      as Mushtaq Mohammad, Aaqib Javed
            with thousands watching and millions                                                                  and Tendulkar. Every young prodigy
            waiting, a 15-year-old walked out to                                                                  follows a different path. Some fade
            open the batting for India against En-                                                                away under expectation while others
            gland. On the other end was one of the                                                                build legendary careers. History of-
            fastest bowlers in world cricket, Jofra                                                               fers both examples. What separates
            Archer. It was a moment designed to                                                                   Sooryavanshi is that he already looks
            test nerves. Archer charged in and                                                                    like a cricketer shaped by the modern
            fired a short ball aimed at the body.                                                                 T20 era; fearless, inventive and natu-
            Most debutants, especially teenagers,                                                                 rally aggressive, yet technically sound
            would have looked to survive. Vaibhav                                                                 enough to succeed across formats.
            had other ideas. He went down on                                                                          Comparisons with Tendulkar are
            one knee and pulled the ball over fine                                                                inevitable because of the age record,
            leg for a stunning first-ball six. In that                                                            but their first international moments
            single shot, the youngster announced                                                                  could not have been more different.
            himself to international cricket in un-  Every young prodigy follows a different path. Some fade away under expectation while others   When  Tendulkar  debuted  in  1989,
            forgettable fashion. At just 15 years                                                                 he battled through 24 balls to score
            and 99 days, he also became India’s                    build legendary careers (File photo)           15 runs  before being  dismissed  by
            youngest men’s international cricket-                                                                 Waqar Younis. His greatness was
            er, breaking a 37-year-old record held   game, but never fear the bowler. That   While his attacking style grabs head-  built on patience, discipline and re-
            by Sachin Tendulkar.              fearless mindset has quickly become   lines, it is his game awareness and will-  markable consistency over two de-
                                                                                                                  cades. Sooryavanshi represents a
                For those who have followed   his biggest trademark.            ingness to learn that have impressed
            Sooryavanshi’s rapid rise, the fear-  His rise has been anything but   those working closely with him.  different generation. His first scoring
                                                                                                                  shot in international cricket cleared
            less stroke came as no surprise. His   accidental. Representing the Rajas-  India’s  team  management  also   the boundary. It reflected the confi-
            journey through the Indian Premier   than Royals, Sooryavanshi impressed   deserves credit for handling the teen-  dence of young cricketers who have
            League over the last two seasons has   everyone with his clean ball-striking,   ager carefully. Despite growing calls   grown up playing T20 cricket with-
            been  built  on  attacking the biggest   quick footwork and remarkable abil-  for his inclusion during the series, the   out carrying the fear of reputations.
            names  in  world  cricket  without  hes-  ity to read pace at such a young age.   selectors and coaching staff resisted   While no teenager  should  be  bur-
            itation. Whether it was Jasprit Bum-  Coaches  and  teammates  repeatedly   rushing him into the international   dened with comparisons to one of the
            rah, Pat Cummins, Trent Boult, Lungi   praised not only his talent but also his   side. Even when India’s batting strug-  greatest players ever, Sooryavanshi
            Ngidi or Shardul Thakur, Sooryavan-  calmness under pressure. He showed   gled, they remained patient. Bowling   has already shown that he possesses
            shi repeatedly made headlines by hit-  that age was simply a number when he   coach Morne Morkel publicly ex-  something every champion  needs:
            ting the very first ball he faced from   consistently dominated experienced   plained that the team wanted to con-  complete belief in his own ability.
            elite bowlers for six. It is a remarkable   international bowlers in the IPL. More   tinue backing its established players
            pattern  that  speaks not just  about   importantly, he displayed maturity   while allowing Sooryavanshi time to   Archan Mehta is a writer dedicated to
            confidence  but  about  preparation.   in handling the enormous attention   develop. Behind the scenes, howev-  telling compelling stories about athletes,
            His approach is simple: respect the   that naturally followed every innings.   er, the youngster was already making   teams, and the world of cricket

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