Mhatre, Suryavanshi turn IPL into sparkling Indian Kids’ League

Bengaluru, May 4: “I worry about the Under-19 opposition that they’ll come up against when the World Cup comes around.” Stephen Fleming had a hint of mischief in his voice while talking about the potential of young stars Ayush Mhatre and Vaibhav Suryavanshi in this season’s IPL.
Mhatre made a sparkling 94 that almost dragged Chennai Super Kings over the line against Royal Challengers Bengaluru here on Saturday, and for many, that knock reminded of Suryavanshi’s 35-ball 100 a few days back.
But 17-year-old Mhatre and 14-year-old Suryavanshi are representatives of a new crop of Indian cricketers, who are unafraid of opponents, situations and reputations.
Mhatre’s half-century offers a case in point. The Super Kings needed a lift-off from 23 in three overs while chasing a formidable target of 214.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who had given away just five runs in his first over, came to bowl the fourth over and Mhatre took the veteran pacer to the cleaners, smashing him for 4, 4, 4, 6, 4, 4.
It was a vindication of the faith the CSK establishment placed on Mhatre once they saw him at their selection nets a few months back.
Skipper Rituraj Gaikwad’s injury gave them the perfect pathway to pick the Mumbai lad, who, as per CSK management, was way ahead of Gujarat’s Urvil Patel and Kerala’s Salman Nizar in trials.
Fleming explained the rationale behind choosing Mhatre.
“We have been very impressed with his skills when he trialled and was with us at the early part of the season. But his composure is overpowering. It’s one thing to have a lot of shots, but to be able to execute that game plan on a big stage in front of some of the biggest players in the world is what I admire.
“I think we have enjoyed a lot of the shots played by young players in this tournament and we’re delighted that we’ve got one ourselves,” said Fleming.
The quality in Mhatre’s batting was quite evident at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. He was not trying to pre-meditate or muscling the balls over the line.
There was this innate cleverness and situational awareness in his batting.
In the final ball of the 15th over, Bhuvneshwar tried the wide ball outside the off-stump to force a false shot off Mhatre.
But the young batter shifted across the stump and biffed it over the extra cover for a six, without even slightly losing his balance or poise.
It looked so calm, motion and kinetic energy in perfect sync with each other. The moment was fit enough to freeze into a frame on the walls of Louvre.
“It’s hard to explain, but there’s a quality around whatever he is doing. He’s got talent. He’s got hand-eye coordination. He’s got a beautiful, silky swing. He’s aggressive. Everything that we like about a modern-day T20 player,” Fleming gushed.
Suryavanshi too fits that bill. Rajasthan Royals head coach Rahul Dravid explained.
“He’s got really good bat speed. He’s got a high back lift. A really good hand-eye coordination in terms of judgment of length. What you look for in a young batsman is how quick he is in picking length,” Dravid observed during Star Sports Press Room recently.
He continued: “Vaibhav is very quick to pick up anything that’s fractionally short or if it’s really full. A combination of high back-lift and the ability to pick length gives him the power and he seems to have a natural strength which is helpful in these situations.” Fleming, himself no stranger to nourishing young talents, was equally impressed with how Mhatre and Suryavanshi have taken this iteration of IPL by storm.
“It’s extraordinary to watch that fearless approach. It doesn’t matter whether you’re 14, 18, 21. The innings that we’ve seen played, particularly by these two youngsters, is just top class.
“It shows maturity beyond their years, but it shows a skill set that is quite daunting, I think, for particularly bowlers around the world. I guess it’s probably something they would have to answer,” said the Kiwi.
Rest assured, the bowlers will not be having many happy thoughts about these kid wonders at the moment. (PTI)

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