Vaibhav Sooryavanshi caught attention right from his debut as captain of India’s Under-19 cricket team. The side played a three-match ODI series against South Africa and emerged victorious in all three games, completing a 3-0 whitewash. Vaibhav made headlines not just as captain but with his all-round performance with both bat and ball.
In the second match of the series, he scored a half-century, and in the third match, he recorded a century. Alongside his batting exploits, he also contributed with the ball, taking wickets to help India dominate the series.
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In the third match, South Africa won the toss and chose to bowl first. However, the Indian openers quickly disproved that decision. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Aaron George put together a 227-run partnership. Vaibhav scored a century off just 63 balls, eventually getting out for 127 runs in 74 balls, hitting 10 sixes and 9 fours.
Aaron George continued the momentum even after Vaibhav’s dismissal, scoring 118 runs in 106 balls, with 16 boundaries. The remaining Indian batters couldn’t make big contributions, though Vedant Trivedi scored 34. Thanks to a late partnership between Mohammad Enan and Henil Patel, India posted a total of 393 for seven wickets.
Chasing 394, South Africa struggled from the outset, losing wickets at regular intervals. Four top-order batters were dismissed for single-digit scores. Jason Rawles scored 19 runs, while Daniel Bossman (40 in 60 balls) and Paul James (41 in 49 balls) attempted a fightback. Corny Botha contributed 36, but it wasn’t enough. The Proteas were eventually all out for 160 in 35 overs.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi took one wicket, Kishan Kumar Singh claimed three, and Mohammad Enan picked up two. Vaibhav was named player of the match and player of the series for his outstanding all-round performance.
