Vaibhav Sooryavanshi smashes second fastest hundred, most sixes in U19 World Cup

Records tumbled as India's teen sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi blazed away to the second fastest hundred in the history of the U-19 World Cup, racing to the landmark in just 55 balls against England in Harare on Friday.

The 14-year-old Sooryavanshi, who made 175 off 80 balls, now has the fastest 150 (off 71 balls) in U-19 cricket, bettering the 98 balls taken by England's Ben Mayes against Scotland at the same venue earlier in the competition.

Sooryavanshi now also has the most sixes for anyone in a Youth ODI innings, surpassing his own 14 maximums against UAE at ICCA Dubai in December. Australian Will Malajczuk holds the record of the quickest century in this tournament with his 51-ball ton against Japan in Windhoek recently.

The Indian opener exploded when it mattered the most, reaching his fifty in just 32 balls and continued in the same vein to torment the English bowlers. His second fifty came off just 23 balls.

Sooryvanshi put on 142 runs in just 19 overs with his skipper Ayush Mhatre, who departed for a 51-ball 53 immediately after bringing up his half-century.

By clearing the ropes repeatedly, Sooryavanshi aggregated a staggering 22 sixes in this edition alone, leapfrogging South Africa's Dewald Brevis, whose record of 18 sixes had stood since 2022.

Sooryavanshi has also become the youngest centurion in the history of the tournament.