Vaibhav Suryavanshi delivered another extraordinary performance in age-group cricket as India began their U-19 Asia Cup campaign in Dubai with a dominant outing against the United Arab Emirates on Friday, December 12. Playing at the ICC Cricket Academy, the 14-year-old produced a breathtaking hundred that powered India to an unprecedented team total of 433 runs.
Suryavanshi reached three figures in a remarkable manner, bringing up his hundred in just 56 deliveries. He ended up scoring 171 runs off 95 balls and his innings included 14 sixes. He acknowledged the ton with folded hands upon reaching the milestone. Despite the scale of the achievement, the century will not feature in official Youth ODI records.
Reason behind the performance not being counted
The reason lies in the tournament’s classification rules. Matches in the U-19 Asia Cup are awarded Youth ODI status only when both teams are from Test-playing nations. Since the UAE is an associate member, the contest does not qualify, regardless of the performance produced. As a result, Suryavanshi’s innings will be logged only under his outstanding matches for the Indian U-19 side, rather than in formal Youth ODI statistics.
Had the match carried official status, the knock would have ranked as the third-fastest Youth ODI century and the second-highest individual score by an Indian at that level. The 14 sixes would also have established a world record in Youth ODIs. Only U-19 World Cups allow fixtures involving associate nations to be recognised as official Youth ODIs, which explains why India’s upcoming game against the USA on January 15 in Bulawayo will qualify, while the Asia Cup match against Malaysia on December 16 will not.
Suryavanshi is no stranger to record-setting performances. Earlier this year, he scored a Youth ODI century against England U-19 in Worcester, reaching the landmark in 52 balls. He also has three half-centuries in 50-over youth cricket, along with two hundreds and a fifty in Youth Tests.
Beyond the junior level, the teenager has already struck three centuries in senior T20 cricket, including one in the 2025 IPL for Rajasthan Royals against Chennai Super Kings, another for India in the Rising Stars Asia Cup versus the UAE, and one for Bihar in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy against Maharashtra.
