Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Poised to Become India's Youngest International Cricketer

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's rise through the ranks of Indian cricket has been rapid, and the 15-year-old now stands on the verge of another milestone. India are expected to hand him a debut in the first T20I against Ireland in Belfast on Friday, which would make him India's youngest international cricketer. If selected, Sooryavanshi will be 15 years and 91 days old, younger than Sachin Tendulkar was when he made his international debut against Pakistan in 1989 at the age of 16 years and 205 days. The youngster's expected debut comes after a strong IPL season with the Rajasthan Royals, where he finished as the tournament's highest run-scorer with 776 runs in 16 innings at a strike rate of 237.30. Only days ago, while playing for India A against Sri Lanka A, Sooryavanshi broke the record for the fastest half-century in List A cricket, reaching the landmark in just 11 balls. As anticipation builds around his likely debut, former Australia opener and Lucknow Super Giants coach Justin Langer has joined the growing list of cricket figures praising the teenager. "Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is only the second selfie I've ever asked for! The other was with an AFL champion who I used to watch when I was a little kid," Langer said to BBC Sport. "I said 'I've never done this before in the IPL, but do you mind if we have a selfie together? Because I am in awe of your talent, I'm in awe of your mindset, I'm in awe of the way you play cricket'. Watching him bat is mind-blowing." "What makes him so special? He's got extraordinary hands. I always say the really great players, their hands are like a hose in a swimming pool," the former Australian batter added. "He almost does a figure-eight in his hands in his backswing. You know, it's tiny, it's subtle, but they're just so loose."

"A lot of left-handers, when they're trying to hit sixes, they go from the sight screen round to the leg side, which is different with Sooryavanshi who sets up to hit it off side," Langer said, adding, "First ball of his IPL career, he hit a six over cover. Not over long-on, not over deep mid-wicket like a lot of left-handers. He hit a six over cover and it went about 20 rows back into the stand."