India defeated Zimbabwe 3-0 in the T20 series due to the brilliant performance of 15-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi. Vaibhav became ‘Man of the Match’ and ‘Man of the Series’. He also became the youngest player to score a half-century in T20Is.
Harare: In the third T20 match against Zimbabwe, 15-year-old opener Vaibhav Suryavanshi played another stormy innings and led India to a spectacular victory. For this performance he received both ‘Man of the Match’ and ‘Man of the Series’ awards. With this win, India ended the Zimbabwe tour with a 3-0 clean sweep. In the third match, this left-handed batsman scored 81 runs in just 49 balls with the help of 8 fours and 4 sixes. This is the biggest score of his international T20 career.
Earlier, in the second match against Zimbabwe, Vaibhav had scored fifty in just 19 balls. With this, he became the youngest player to score a half century in men’s T20 cricket. Not only this, he has also become the first player in men’s T20 history to score more than one fifty before turning 16. This 15-year-old boy scored a total of 151 runs in the three-match series at an average of 50.33 and strike rate of 196.10.
This series was a great comeback for Vaibhav, because his performance on the England tour was nothing special. There he scored only 42 runs at an average of 14. After the disappointment of England, he gave this amazing performance in Zimbabwe. Vaibhav also shone in the Under-19 World Cup held in Harare earlier this year. In the final, he won the title for India by scoring 175 runs against England and was also selected as the ‘Best Player of the Tournament’. The same old experience and confidence of playing in Harare came in handy for the senior team as well.
After the match Vaibhav Suryavanshi expressed his happiness. “It’s like a dream,” he said. I have received my first ‘Man of the Match’ and ‘Man of the Series’ awards, which I am very happy with. I tried to give a good start to the team in all three matches. My aim was that if I get a good start, I should convert it into a big innings.” Vaibhav also told that he got full support from the captain, coach and other teammates and he loves playing in Harare.