Despite a rough run in the Tri-Nation A Series and an ill-tempered performance in the previous game, teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi said there was “no pressure” on him in the final because he trusted his plans and went back to his natural game to produce a match-winning performance against Sri Lanka A in Dambulla on Sunday.
The 15-year-old, who is scheduled to make his T20 debut for India later this month, smashed the record for the fastest fifty in List A cricket history with a stunning 29-ball 94. The left-hander set the tone for India A’s 66-run victory in the final by smashing a fifty off only 11 balls.
“I hadn’t thought of anything. Just wanted to execute what I planned in the first ten and take it forward from there,” PTI quoted Sooryavanshi as saying after being named player of the match.
Similar to how he did it with an 80-ball 175 against England in the Under-19 World Cup victory earlier this year, his spectacular attack virtually clinched the match in the first ten overs.
India A raced to 132 in just nine overs thanks to Sooryavanshi’s early fireworks. Despite a middle-order slowdown, the team managed to amass a formidable 377/9 before dismissing Sri Lanka A for 311 in 47.1 overs.
The final took place against the same team that India A had previously lost to in a Super Over; in that match, Sooryavanshi got into an incident with Sri Lankan players on the pitch.
After a record-breaking IPL season in which he hit 72 sixes, that incident, along with a modest run of scores in the competition (117 from four innings), had cast doubt on both his hitting and temperament.
On slower surfaces, the flashy left-hander appeared scratchy and frequently failed to convert starts. However, Sooryavanshi claimed he was never under pressure.
“No pressure. I wasn’t executing what I wanted. But after consulting with the coaches, I got it right. Learnt a lot this series,” he said.
Sooryavanshi, who is best known for his T20 heroics thus far, claimed he was at ease in the 50-over format and relished the challenge of adapting to different conditions.
“I’ve played a lot of 50-over cricket. Not sure people know about it. The challenge was to adapt to different conditions, it was nice to take it on,” he said.
After a few losses earlier in the competition, India A captain Tilak Varma lauded the team’s collective response, saying the team displayed poise and clarity in the championship match.
“Everyone showed real character. Especially after we lost back-to-back games. Then we won with big margins which was tremendous,” Tilak said.
He believed that the team’s domestic experience and role clarity had been crucial.
“Everyone has played domestic cricket and has experience. Just a matter of planning before the game. We start big, consolidate and accelerate,” he said.
Despite the easy victory, Tilak acknowledged that the bowling effort was not flawless.
“Slightly disappointed with the bowling but it happens in one-off series. We have a good side,” he said.
While acknowledging that Sooryavanshi’s outstanding innings had immediately put his team under pressure, Sri Lanka A skipper Sahan Arachchige also bemoaned the expensive finish when No. 9 Anukul Roy hammered 39 runs from 15 balls after surviving a missed opportunity.
“Sooryavanshi played a brilliant innings. We managed the innings nicely thereon but let it slide in the last two overs. When we are chasing a big score, top order can fall cheaply. It happens. Young guys have played well, seniors have scored too. It’s been a good tournament,” Arachchige said.
