Teen batting prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has already taken junior cricket and IPL by storm but the Rajasthan Royals youngster has his eyes set on a bigger milestone – to become the first batter ever to score a double century in T20 cricket.
Sooryavanshi, all of 15, has also made a bold statement of wanting to surpass the iconic unbeaten 175 by Chris Gayle, which still is the highest individual score in the format. Gayle’s historic knock for Royal Challengers Bengaluru against Pune Warriors India during the 2013 IPL season has remained unbeaten since then.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Wants To Break Chris Gayle’s Record
The teenager confidently revealed his target during an appearance on former England captain Kevin Pietersen’s YouTube show The Switch.
“I want to score 200 in T20,” Sooryavanshi told Pietersen on his YouTube show.
When Pietersen pointed out that “Chris Gayle’s got 175,” the youngster remained unfazed.
“Yeah, I want to break his record and score 200. If I play 20 overs in any game, I definitely will break that record.”
Explosive Performances Already Turning Heads
Sooryavanshi’s confidence is supported by an ever-growing list of destructive innings in both formats and age-group cricket. He has already hammered 190 for Bihar in Vijay Hazare Trophy and smashed 175 in Under-19 World Cup final. He has a top T20 score of 144 to his name at the official level but it is his hard-hitting approach that continues to draw much attention.
The teen gave another display of his powerful hitting after helping Rajasthan Royals qualify for the IPL 2026 playoffs, smashing a 25-ball century in a challenge segment on Pietersen’s show.
Last year he tore apart England U19 with a magnificent 143, scoring his century in just 52 balls – the fastest hundred ever scored in Youth ODI cricket.
He also made his presence felt in the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup against UAE where he made the joint third-fastest T20 century by an Indian, clubbing himself alongside the likes of explosive names like Rishabh Pant and Abhishek Sharma.
Inevitably comparisons with Sachin Tendulkar have started to emerge. In 2010, Tendulkar became the first batsman to score a double century in ODI cricket and it was a record that redefined the limits of what was thought possible at the time.
Sooryavanshi Aiming For Greater Heights
But Sooryavanshi is still a big thinker every time he goes out to bat. Already seen as a real threat to Gayle’s long-standing T20 record with fearless intent, remarkable consistency and age firmly on his side, the teenager is making a name for himself.
“I will try to score 200 in the next match. I will try to play the full 50 overs. The more I score, the more the team will benefit,” he had famously said after his record-breaking knock against England U19.
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Debayan Bhattacharyya is a seasoned sports journalist and digital media professional, currently serving as the Chief Sub Editor at ITV Digital (NewsX). A true Football-Fanatic Bong, his professional journey began at Zee Media, where he kicked off his career as a Sub-Editor for the sports team at India.com and CricketCountry. His ability to blend insightful analysis with rapid-fire news delivery soon led him to Times Network, where he served as a Senior Copy Editor for Times Now. Before his current role at NewsX, Debayan spent a significant tenure at OneIndia’s MyKhel as a Senior Sub Editor.
