New Delhi [India], May 25 (ANI): 15-year-old Rajasthan Royals (RR) prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi said that he aims to not only break West Indies legend Chris Gayle's record of 175*, the highest score in T20 cricket, but also to score the format's first-ever double ton by a batter.

Sooryavanshi featured on legendary England batter Kevin Pietersen's YouTube Channel, 'The Switch'.

On being asked by Pietersen if he liked celebrating his half-centuries, Sooryavanshi, who has made a habit out of scoring them in less than 20 balls, responded, 'No, not that much (on celebrating 50s).'

Further, he said, 'I want to score 200 in T20s. I want to break Gayle's record.'

Gayle registered 175* for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) during the IPL 2013 clash against now-defunct Pune Warriors India (PWI). His knock came in 66 balls, with 13 fours and 17 sixes at a strike rate of 265.15. During the match, he reached his century in 30 balls, which to date remains the fastest IPL century.

After making his debut as the youngest IPL player at the age of 14 last year, Sooryavanshi is having a generational season with the bat, scoring 583 runs in 14 matches at an average of 41.64 and a strike rate of 232.27, including a century and three fifties, with a best score of 103. He has scored 53 sixes this year in the tournament, the most by an Indian during a single IPL edition and is seven away from leapfrogging Gayle's record of 59 sixes in the 2012 edition.

Last year in the IPL, Sooryavanshi slammed a 35-ball century against the Gujarat Titans, which is the fastest by an Indian in IPL history. He also became the youngest T20 centurion ever.

In the U19 WC this year, Suryanvanshi ended up as the second-highest run-getter with 439 runs in seven matches at an average of 62.71 and a strike rate of 169.49, with a century and three fifties and a best score of 175. He smacked a record-breaking 30 sixes in the competition, surpassing South Africa's Dewald Brevis' 18 sixes in the 2022 edition by miles. In fact, he holds the record for the most sixes in U19 WC history.

He is also India's leading run-getter in U19 ODIs, with 1,412 runs in 25 innings at 56.48, a strike rate over 165, four centuries, seven fifties, and a best score of 175.

Since October 2024, it has been onwards and upwards for this southpaw, as he first made it to the headlines with a 58-ball century for India U19 against Australia U19 in Chennai, the fastest by an India U19 batter in Youth Tests.

During the IPL mega auction ahead of the 2025 season, he secured a deal worth Rs 1.1 crore with Rajasthan Royals, making him the youngest IPL player ever. In the IPL clash against the Gujarat Titans, at the age of 14, Suryavanshi became the youngest T20 centurion and the first Indian to hit the fastest IPL fifty.

Starting his IPL journey with a first-ball six, he became one of the young, emerging stars of the season, with 252 runs in seven innings at an average of 36.00 and a strike rate of 206.55, with a century and fifty. After that, it has been records for Suryavanshi wherever he goes.

Whether it is his 52-ball century against England in July last year, making him the youngest and fastest U19 centurion of all time, his 61-ball 108 against Maharashtra in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) season last year which made him the youngest centurion in the tournament history or his 84-ball 190 against Arunachal Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT), making him the youngest List A centurion and second-fastest List A centurion amongst Indians last year, Suryavanshi has taken every stage by storm one by one. (ANI)