Teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi continued his fearless approach in the second T20I against Zimbabwe, providing India with another explosive start at the Harare Sports Club on Saturday, July 25. The 15-year-old left-handed opener scored a quickfire 20 off just nine deliveries at an impressive strike rate of 222.22, smashing three boundaries and a towering six before his entertaining cameo came to an end.
Sooryavanshi looked in complete control during his brief stay at the crease, taking on Zimbabwe pacer Richard Ngarava in the third over of the innings. The youngster launched a stunning assault, striking the left-arm seamer for 4, 6, 4 and 4 in four consecutive scoring shots. However, while attempting another attacking stroke off the final delivery of the over, he failed to clear the infield and was caught by Blessing Muzarabani just outside the 30-yard circle.
The teenager became India’s second wicket of the innings after Abhishek Sharma departed early. Earlier, Muzarabani had dismissed the Indian opener for eight runs off eight balls, with Ryan Burl completing a sharp catch to give Zimbabwe the early breakthrough.
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Although Sooryavanshi could not convert his start into another big score, his aggressive intent once again kept the pressure on the Zimbabwe bowlers. The youngster had stolen the spotlight in the series opener with a sensational 50 off just 19 balls, hammering four fours and four sixes to guide India to a comfortable seven-wicket victory while chasing 126.
S🥵🥵RYAVANSHI
4️⃣6️⃣4️⃣4️⃣
Watch it LIVE on FanCode! 🇮🇳 👇https://t.co/3kCBPJuPrW#ZIMvIND #IndiaCricket #RokoNahiThoko pic.twitter.com/9EHYBT9fjw
— FanCode (@FanCode) July 25, 2026
That memorable innings also etched his name into the record books, making him the youngest player to score a half-century in men’s international cricket.
Meanwhile, India handed a T20I debut to Vidarbha fast bowler Yash Thakur, who replaced Ashok Sharma in the playing XI for the second match of the series. Ashok had made his international debut in the opening T20I but finished wicketless despite bowling his full quota of four overs.
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Thakur arrived in the national team with an impressive domestic record. Before his international debut, the 27-year-old had featured in 74 T20 matches, claiming 110 wickets. He also has valuable IPL experience, having picked up 27 wickets in 22 matches for Lucknow Super Giants and Punjab Kings. Across formats, Thakur has also represented Vidarbha in 32 first-class matches and 57 List A games, collecting 93 and 90 wickets respectively, underlining his credentials as one of India’s promising pace options.
