Swashbuckling opening batter Vaibhav Suryavanshi continued his brilliant form with the bat as he blasted a quickfire fifty in the third ODI against England's U19 team.
Part of India's U19 tour of England, the precocious Suryavanshi was expected to dominate against players of his age, and he did not disappoint.
He smashed 48 runs from just 19 deliveries in the first match of the series as the Indian team chased down 175 inside 25 overs at Hove late last month.
The 14-year-old hit three fours and five sixes during the six-wicket win.
Suryavanshi then made a more sedate 34-ball 45 in the second match which England won by just one wicket in the final over.
He turned up the heat in the third match of the series on Wednesday in Northampton, smashing 86 from just 31 balls.
The England U19 side had set an imposing target of 269 in 40 overs in a rain-curtailed clash. The opening batter was given the license to go after the bowling, and he did not need a second invitation.
Suryavanshi cracked six fours and nine sixes during his entertaining innings, clearing the boundary ropes with ease.
That Suryavanshi would dominate U19 bowlers came as no surprise after his sensational debut season in the Indian Premier League with Rajasthan Royals where Suryavanshi hit 252 runs in seven matches, including a century which made him the youngest player to score a hundred in men's Twenty20 cricket.
In the IPL, Suryavanshi announced his arrival onto the big stage with a breathtaking 38-ball 101 against Gujarat Titans, and against an attack that included international bowlers like Rashid Khan, Mohammad Siraj and others.
After his IPL ton, Rajasthan captain Riyan Parag said it was incredible to see a 14-year-old take on world-class bowlers.
“It was incredible,” Royals skipper Parag had said. “We’ve spent two months with him and we have seen what he can do. But to see him do this against the world-class bowlers … I can't express in words.”
