India teenager Vaibhav Sooryavanshi may not have enjoyed the dream debut he had hoped for, but he earned praise from England’s match-winner Jacob Bethell after the second T20I in Manchester on Saturday.The 15-year-old Sooryavanshi became India’s youngest-ever T20I debutant when he was picked for the second match against England. Although he managed only 14 runs, the left-hander showed glimpses of his talent with two sixes before being stumped.After England’s four-wicket win, Bethell said he has been following Sooryavanshi’s progress and believes the youngster has a bright future.“Yeah. It feels weird to say that I’m playing against someone seven years younger than me, but, yeah, you know, I’ve watched him bat in India. I’ve watched him, you know, today, the swing and everything is pure. So, yeah, he’s an unbelievable talent,” Bethell said.
Youngest India T20I debutant
At 15 years, 3 months and 7 days, Sooryavanshi broke Shafali Verma’s record to become India’s youngest international debutant.The Bihar youngster earned his India call-up after a sensational IPL season with Rajasthan Royals, where he scored 776 runs in 16 matches, including a century and five fifties. He also broke Chris Gayle’s record for the most sixes in a single IPL season.His international debut, however, ended quietly as he scored 14 before being stumped. He later took his maiden international catch on the boundary during England’s chase.
Bethell leads England’s chase
While Sooryavanshi’s debut grabbed plenty of attention, it was Bethell who stole the show with an unbeaten 76 that guided England to a four-wicket victory while chasing 191. The hosts reached the target with an over to spare to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.Bethell said performing against one of the world’s strongest bowling attacks made the innings even more satisfying.“I really enjoyed that semi-final (2026 T20 World Cup), although we couldn’t get over the line. They’re a high-skilled attack, it’s just that I’ve played them on two pretty nice pitches. And, yeah, you want to do well against the best teams in the world. So, yeah, it’s really pleasing to do so,” he said.England were in trouble at 1/2 before Harry Brook’s aggressive 39 off 15 balls changed the momentum. Bethell then built important partnerships, especially with Tom Banton, to keep the chase on track.“It worked out well in the end, but just going into bat two down, Brooky set the tone really well there. He flipped the momentum straight back on them… everyone just kept chipping in. In those kind of chases, you’re not going rapid the whole time, but a couple of big overs and then the game swings,” Bethell said.
Bishnoi’s costly over changes the game
The decisive moment came in the 17th over when Ravi Bishnoi conceded 29 runs, including two no-balls that gave England two free-hits.Bethell admitted England changed its approach after the freebies.“If I’m honest, I probably would have targeted the other end more… But when there are a couple of free hits and then the bowler’s down, you try and take him. So, yeah, that all worked out really well,” he said.Bethell also said England’s batters adapted well to the different boundary sizes instead of focusing only on the shorter side.“One side might be easier to hit sixes, but you can also score the same amount of runs by hitting into the bigger gaps. It was just about being smart with that. I thought as a batting group, we were really good at that,” he added.Despite the defeat, Sooryavanshi’s debut remained one of the biggest talking points of the match, with Bethell’s glowing praise highlighting the excitement surrounding India’s newest teenage sensation.
