Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, aged 15, became the youngest male cricketer to debut for India after being named in the team for their Twenty20 International match against England on Saturday, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar.
The teenager has been billed as one of the most exciting prospects in cricket since he made his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut for Rajasthan Royals in 2025 at just 14 years old.
He enhanced his reputation in this year’s IPL, finishing as the leading run-scorer for Rajasthan with 776 runs in 16 matches, and breaking Chris Gayle’s record for most sixes in a season.
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He was named both the Most Valuable Player (MVP) and the Best Emerging Player in the competition, earning him a call-up to the T20I series against Ireland and England.
Sooryavanshi’s selection follows a stunning IPL campaign for Rajasthan Royals, where he amassed 776 runs to finish as the tournament’s leading run scorer.
He struck one century and five half-centuries during the season. He picked the Orange Cap for the leading run-getter, the IPL most valuable player and emerging player prizes.
“With his performances, he has almost forced us to pick him,” chief selector Ajit Agarkar said. “Like everyone else that has watched T20 cricket in India, we have got high hopes of him. I think he just has picked himself.”
Sooryavanshi, however, was not given his debut against Ireland as India were dealt a shock 2-0 series defeat.
Here’s a list of the youngest male cricketers to have debuted for India across formats:
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
Age: 15 years, 99 days
Debut against: England on July 4, 2026
Format: T20I
Sachin Tendulkar
Age: 16 years, 205 days
Debut against: Pakistan on November 15, 1989
Format: Test
Parthiv Patel
Age: 17 years, 152 days
Debut against: England on August 8, 2002
Format: Test
Maninder Singh
Age: 17 years, 193 days
Debut against: Pakistan on December 23, 1982
Format: Test
Harbhajan Singh
Age: 17 years, 265 days
Debut against: Australia on March 25, 1998
Format: Test
(With inputs from AFP)
Source: Khaleej Times