Vaibhav Sooryavanshi became India’s youngest international cricketer on Sunday, and vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Rajiv Shukla praised him, saying the teenager deserved the chance.
Shukla said the BCCI gives opportunities to players who deserve them, dismissing social media allegations that Sooryavanshi had been unjustly ignored.
He continued by saying that he had always thought the youngster will have his chance at the appropriate moment.
“Sooryavanshi deserved this opportunity. The BCCI does not treat anyone unfairly. There was criticism on social media that he was not being picked, but I had said he would get his chance at the right time. I’m confident he will do well and establish himself in the future. The team management deserves credit for this decision,” Shukla said.
On Saturday, Sooryavanshi made his debut in the second Twenty20 International against England in Manchester, making history.
Aged just 15 years and 99 days, Sooryavanshi etched his name in the record books as India’s youngest international cricketer across formats and the youngest player from a Test-playing nation to debut in T20Is.
The left-handed batter made an impressive start, scoring 14 off 10 balls, including two sixes, before being stumped by Will Jacks. In doing so, he eclipsed the records previously held by Sachin Tendulkar and Piyush Chawla to become India’s youngest international debutant across formats.
England defeated India by 4 wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match T20I series after the opening match was washed out. The third T20I is scheduled to be played at Trent Bridge on Tuesday.
