‘Why hit a single when you can hit six?’ – the making of a teen IPL star

When the ball can be hit for a six, why not hit a single?

Vaibhav Suryavanshi, a 14-year veteran batting sensation, posed the question to one of his first professional cricket coaches.

Former first-class cricketer for Jharkhand, Manish Ojha, recalls that “Vaibhav was hitting sixes and fours off almost every ball.”

“Vaibhav, I asked after the session: “Why are you only hitting boundaries? We will need more singles to attend the state matches because it’s a four-day affair. He responded, “Sir, if I can hit a ball for six, why would I take a single off it?” When I realized that he was prepared for the next level.

The teenager became the youngest player to record a century in men’s T20 cricket on Monday, lighting up the most glamorous of the cricketing fields.

In a spectacular 38-ball innings that included 11 sixes and seven fours, he batted for the Rajasthan Royals and the Gujarat Titans.

Vaibhav’s IPL debut was significant. From the first ball he faced, he made a six-footer and scored a hundred in his only subsequent appearance.

He quickly showed promise in his small district of India’s Bihar, Samastipur. Sanjeev Suryavanshi, the father of Vaibhav, who is also a professional cricketer, noticed a spark in his son. However, he started his training at home when he was five because there were no recognized academies in the neighborhood.

Sanjeev, who once owned a small shop, realized that his son needed a reliable coach. Vaibhav’s father, then, decided to transport him to Patna city, a three-hour drive away.

What are you doing, many people would ask him. However, he was the first to acknowledge Vaibhav’s abilities, according to Bihar coach Robin Singh.

His father had to sell a plot of land to make sure his son received the best training and access to the best facilities. His mother also had to give a lot of sacrifices. She would even send food to the coaches when she woke up at three in the morning to get him breakfast.

In no time did Vaibhav impress his new coaches.

“I found him to be a lot different from other people when I began working with him.” You would demonstrate a technique or a test to him immediately, Ojha said, and he would pick it up.

“The majority of players just get along with it in practice, but they fail when it comes to playing games.” However, Vaibhav had a unique ability to execute everything flawlessly, even during high-pressure matches.

Vaibhav always outperformed his peers in terms of age. He would stand out from the crowd for his strokeplay and game awareness.

We realized we were wasting his time after ten days of playing alongside children his age. So we began letting senior players practice with him,” Singh said.

Vaibhav would face 450 balls each day and practice daily from 730am to 4pm. By the time he was 12 years old, his coaches had the confidence to allow him to play cricket professionally.

He consistently put up runs for the Bihar under-19s team, which led to the selection of him for the India under-19s team. In a youth test against Australia, he smashed a 58-ball hundred, aged only 13.

He soon made Bihar’s squad for the Ranji Trophy (India’s premier first-class competition), and Rajasthan signed him for a sum of 106 789 (1. 5 crore rupees), making him the youngest player to ever hold a contract at an IPL auction in December 2024.

Brian Lara, Vidhy’s role model, and he plays the ball on merit without any issues, Ojha said.

We had anticipated that Rahul Dravid, an icon of India, would be able to offer him an IPL contract, and our excitement increased when Rajasthan Royals signed him.

Suryavanshi has already been referred to as “Boss Baby” in cricket circles by those who believe that Chris Gayle, also known as “The Universe Boss,” is comparable.

Nobody else has scored a faster time in the IPL than West Indian Gayle, who also easily surpasses Maharashtra’s Vijay Zol’s 18 years and 118 days for the fastest T20 century, which was previously held by Maharashtra’s Vijay Zol. He still holds the record for the fastest IPL century, having taken just 30 balls in 2013.

The greatest run-scorer in history, Sachin Tendulkar, made his India debut at the age of 16; Suryavanshi’s former coach believes he will soon join The Little Master in the national team.

A Bihar native from a small village has made it to the IPL. He is the subject of a whole new conversation. He also is adept at opening doors. If he achieves this soon, don’t be surprised, said Singh.

Before that, Suryavanshi, who has received almost £9, 000 from his state government after his IPL century, will face-off against the world’s best bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, at the Mumbai Indians on Thursday.