“Very few people know that he was picked for Bihar’s U-19 team when he was eight. He was not selected because of his age.
“In one of the U-12 matches at Patna’s Moinul Haq Stadium, he scored 153 runs. Out of the 15 sixes he hit, seven balls could not even be traced because they landed outside the ground,” he says.
Jha continues: “Three weeks before he was picked in Bihar’s Ranji Trophy probables in 2022 as a 12-year-old, allegations were raised about his age. The BCCI called him to Bengaluru, where he had to undergo a bone test. (VVS) Laxman sir wanted to squash these speculations once and for all. He is only 15, and at such a young age, he has already gone through things that even a 30-year-old hasn’t.”
“Sab temperament ka khel hai, aur Vaibhav par Bhole ka haath hai (Cricket is a game of temperament, and he has Lord Shiva’s blessings),” he says.
On his YouTube channel, R Ashwin spoke in detail about how Sooryavanshi has worked on his game during the tournament itself. Be it Mohsin Khan, Prafull Hinge or Mohammed Siraj, all troubled him with sharp short balls aimed at the body. Mohsin even bowled a maiden over to him. Hinge dismissed him for a golden duck, while Siraj repeatedly beat him from the same length.
What stood out, however, is how quickly Sooryavanshi made the minute adjustments. Within weeks, he worked on his game and started playing the upper cut against the bouncer with confidence. The second six off Pat Cummins in his second over was a perfect example.
On Friday, the battle between Siraj and Sooryavanshi will once again be one of the most fascinating contests to watch. In their previous meeting, before eventually getting out, the teenager had already struck Siraj for three exquisite boundaries.
Now they are set to face each other again. Siraj will come armed with pace, hostility and plans. Sooryavanshi will walk in with fearless intent and a bat that currently seems incapable of staying quiet for too long. And somewhere in Tajpur, they will watch calmly, because for them, this is nothing new.