Cliff Notes – Suryavanshi, still only 14, named Bihar Ranji Trophy vice-captain
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Vaibhav Suryavanshi has been appointed vice-captain of Bihar for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season, following impressive performances for India Under-19 in Australia and England.
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The Bihar cricket Association is under pressure to establish a five-member selection panel after a late scramble to appoint selectors ahead of the season, which begins on October 15.
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Despite his young age and limited first-class experience, Suryavanshi’s talent has sparked discussions about his potential move to a more established first-class structure in India.
Suryavanshi, still only 14, named Bihar Ranji Trophy vice-captain
Vaibhav Suryavanshi has been named Bihar’s vice-captain for the first two rounds of the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 season that kicks off on October 15. The squad will be led by batter Sakibul Gani.
The appointments came just two days prior to the start of the season after the Bihar cricket Association (BCA) had to make a late scramble to appoint a selector, on an ad hoc basis, to join a two-member panel following a BCCI order. The BCA has been directed to appoint a five-member selection panel at the earliest.
Suryavanshi’s elevation came on the back of a rich run of form for India Under-19 on the tour of Australia, where he contributed fast starts up top. He smashed a 78-ball century in the first four-day match in Brisbane and finished as the second-highest run-scorer of the multi-day series, scoring 133 runs in three innings as India won 2-0.
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Prior to that, Suryavanshi was also among the runs in England, hitting 143, the fastest century in youth one-dayers, in Worcester this July. In five matches, he amassed 355 runs at a strike rate of 174.01, comfortably finishing as the highest run-getter of the series.
Suryavanshi, 14, has played just five first-class games since debuting in January 2024 at 12 years and 284 days, but has aggregated just 100 runs in ten innings, with a best of 41. India Under-19 commitments have meant Suryavanshi is yet to have a straight run of games in India’s premier first-class competition.
Earlier this year, Suryavanshi hit the headlines by becoming the youngest centurion in men’s T20s when he hit 101 off 38 balls for Rajasthan Royals against Gujarat Titans in Jaipur in an IPL 2025 game.
Having made history just a few months earlier for being the youngest to be picked in the IPL at 13, Suryavanshi featured in seven games in the 2025 edition, all as an opener. He made 252 runs at a strike rate of 206.55.
Bihar endured an abysmal 2024-25 season, finishing with no wins. They managed a solitary point in seven games – losing six of those outright to be relegated. Bihar are part of the Plate league, and will open their campaign against Arunachal Pradesh in Patna, before taking on Manipur in Nadiad from October 25.
Suryavanshi’s temperament and run-scoring ability have elicited calls for him to be a part of a more established first-class structure in India. There have been murmurs of a possible switch from Bihar. However, for now, the BCA is keen on doing all they can to retain Suryavanshi in a bid to return to the Elite league.
Suryavanshi is unlikely to feature in the entire Ranji season as he’s also in the running for a berth in India’s squad for the Under-19 World Cup in early 2026.
Bihar Ranji Trophy 2025-26 squad
Piyush Kumar Singh, Bhashkar Dubey, Sakibul Gani (capt), Vaibhav Suryavanshi (vice-capt), Arnav Kishor, Ayush Loharuka, Bipin Saurabh, Amod Yadav, Nawaz Khan, Sakib Hussain, Raghvendra Pratap Singh, Sachin Kumar Singh, Himanshu Singh, Khalid Alam, Sachin Kumar
