President Droupadi Murmu on Friday conferred the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar on India’s 14-year-old batting prodigy Vaibhav Suryavanshi for his outstanding achievements in domestic and Under-19 cricket.
The President presented the awards to children for exceptional accomplishments in the fields of Bravery, Social Service, Environment, Sports, Art and Culture, and Science and Technology at a ceremony held in the national capital.
Congratulating the awardees, President Murmu said, “Vaibhav Suryavanshi has made a name for himself in the highly competitive and talent-filled world of cricket and has set many records.”
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) also congratulated the youngster on his achievement. “Congratulations to our explosive young batter, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, on being conferred the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar by the Honourable President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu,” the BCCI posted on X.
The Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar is India’s highest civilian honour for individuals aged between five and 18 years, instituted to recognise excellence across diverse domains, including art and culture, innovation, science and technology, social service, sports and acts of bravery.
On Wednesday, Suryavanshi smashed 190 off 84 balls against Arunachal Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, becoming the youngest centurion in List A history. The knock also broke AB de Villiers’ record for the fastest 150 in List A cricket, while his 15 sixes were the most by any Indian in the 50-over format.
Earlier this month, Suryavanshi struck an unbeaten century for Bihar against Maharashtra in an Elite Group B Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025 match at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. He scored an unbeaten 108 off 61 balls—his maiden century in the domestic T20 tournament and his third overall in the format. The effort made him the youngest batter to score a century in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, at 14 years and 250 days.
The 14-year-old also holds the record for the highest score by an Indian in Under-19 Asia Cup history, smashing 171 off just 95 balls against the UAE.
The explosive southpaw also hammered a century against Australia Under-19 in a Youth Test match in Brisbane in November. His most recent standout performance came in the Rising Stars Asia Cup, where he scored 144 off 42 balls for India A against the UAE, smashing 11 fours and 15 sixes.
His 32-ball hundred made him the youngest male cricketer to score a century for any national representative side at senior level, breaking a 20-year-old record.
The teenage batter from Bihar also enjoyed a breakout IPL debut season with the Rajasthan Royals, becoming the youngest-ever player in the tournament’s history at 14 years and 23 days when he debuted against the Lucknow Super Giants.
Nine days later, he stunned the cricketing world by becoming the youngest centurion in IPL history. His explosive 35-ball century against the Gujarat Titans was the fastest IPL hundred by an Indian and the second-fastest overall, behind only Chris Gayle.
–IANS
