Vaibhav Sooryavanshi took his special ‘A’ celebration to the world stage with his first international half-century against Zimbabwe in Harare on Thursday (July 23). He became the first 15-year-old in the world to reach
the milestone, doing so in just 18 balls with four boundaries and as many sixes.
He celebrated the milestone by making the ‘A’ sign with his fingers towards the dressing room. He has been doing it for the last few months, including in the IPL, where it went viral after his half-century against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
The youngster initially played down the viral celebration during the post-match presentation, telling commentator Murali Kartik that his on-field reactions were spontaneous and carried no deeper meaning.
However, a behind-the-scenes video shared by Rajasthan Royals later revealed the real story. In a candid conversation with the team manager and his cricket guardian, Romi Bhinder, Sooryavanshi explained that the ‘A’ sign was a tribute to his mother, Arti.
“The celebration is for my mother. Her name starts with the letter ‘A’,” Vaibhav Sooryavanshi said.
In Harare, pacer Richard Ngarava was the first to feel Sooryavanshi’s fury, getting hammered for a 100-metre six over deep backward square leg, which was followed by a steady-stance, beautifully timed four through cover and another maximum over long-off. He then dismantled Brad Evans, clearing his front leg to launch a boundary down the ground before going down on one knee to whip another six over long leg.
The onslaught continued against Blessing Muzarabani, as Sooryavanshi slapped a short ball over deep point and smashed a 90-metre six down the ground. His assault ended immediately after reaching the fifty when he top-edged Richard Ngarava to deep third man, but he left India in a strong position at 68/2 after 6.2 overs. The Men in Blue eventually won by seven wickets.
This would be a huge confidence boost for the youngster, who struggled to cross the 15-run mark in his first three innings against England and was promptly dropped before a fourth chance.
