Vaibhav Suryavanshi facts for kids

Vaibhav Suryavanshi (born 27 March 2011) is an Indian cricketer who plays for Bihar and Rajasthan Royals. A left-handed batsman, he made his first-class debut for Bihar in the Ranji Trophy in 2024 at the age of 12. Later that year, he became the youngest player ever to sign an Indian Premier League contract, joining Rajasthan Royals at the age of 13, and became the youngest player to feature in List A cricket.

Early life

Suryavanshi grew up at Tajpur, around 10 kilometers from Samastipur in the state of Bihar. He started playing cricket at nine years old, and was initially coached by his father.

Domestic career

Suryavanshi played as a 12-year-old the Vinoo Mankad Trophy for Bihar's under-19 side. He made his first-class debut for Bihar against Mumbai at the reported age of 12 years and 284 days old in January 2024. In doing so, he became the second youngest cricketer to play in the Ranji Trophy for Bihar, and the fourth youngest overall. He became the youngest player in the modern era, beating the record of Yuvraj Singh (15 years and 57 days), with Alimuddin holding the overall record for the youngest Indian first-class debutant at just 12 years and 73 days old in the 1942-43 season for Rajputana.

In November 2024, Suryavanshi became the youngest player to sign an Indian Premier League contract when he joined Rajasthan Royals aged 13 years. In December 2024, he became the youngest player to play List A cricket, appearing for Bihar in the Vijay Hazare Trophy against Madhya Pradesh in Hyderabad at the age of 13 years and 269 days.

Youth international career

In 2023, Suryavanshi played for the India B under-19 side in a quadrangular series, scoring 177 runs in six innings, including two half-centuries.

In September 2024, he made his debut for India under-19 in a match against Australia under-19s. He scored a 58-ball century on debut, the fastest for an India under-19 player, before being run out for 104. The innings was the second-fastest century in under-19 international cricket.

At the 2024 ACC Under-19 Asia Cup, Suryavanshi scored 76 off 46 balls against UAE under-19, followed by 67 runs from 36 balls against Sri Lanka in the semi-final.

Age dispute

Doubts have been raised over the authenticity of Suryavanshi's official date of birth. In an interview in 2023, Suryavanshi had mentioned that his 14th birthday was on 27 September 2023, which suggests he was about a year and a half older than his official age.