Vaibhav Sooryavanshi announced himself on the international stage in spectacular fashion during India’s first T20I against Zimbabwe on Thursday, becoming the youngest player to score a maiden T20I half-century.The 15-year-old became the youngest player to score a maiden T20I half-century after a career-high 18-ball fifty in Harare. It was a timely response from the teenage batsman, who made scores of 14, 13 and 15 in his first three appearances for India during the T20I series against England. After the outings, Sooryavanshi was left out of the playing XI for the fifth and final T20I. His exclusion comes amid intense scrutiny of India’s selection decisions. Earlier in the England series, Sanju Samsonwho had been India’s Player of the Tournament during their T20 World Cup-winning campaign, was dropped from the side, with Sooryavanshi brought into the XI. However, for the fifth game, the management went back on course, restoring Samson and abandoning the boy. Samson was later left out of the Indian squad for the tour of Zimbabwe. Former India captain and ex-BCCI selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth admitted he was baffled by the decision to drop Sooryavanshi after just three failures and targeted the head coach Gautam Gambhir on the move. “He (Sooryavanshi) has an effortless range of shots, yet, not a single shot has been cross-batted. This kid is really something special. How can Gautam Gambhir stupidly drop him, of all people, after three failures to shatter his confidence?” said Srikkanth, speaking on his YouTube channel, as quoted by Sportskeeda. When Gambhir did not join the team on the tour of Zimbabwe, former India batsman VVS Laxman serving as the side’s interim head coach. Srikkanth also highlighted the youngster’s commitment to development, revealing that Sooryavanshi returned to work immediately after the England series instead of taking a break. “I salute Vaibhav for his dedication. After the England series, he did not go home and went straight to Rajasthan Royals Camp He is working on his batting against the short ball because he wants to prove to the whole world that he is special,” added Srikkanth. The 1983 World Cup winner was equally impressed with the fearless approach displayed by Sooryavanshi despite the pressure of retaining his place in the national side. According to Srikkanth, many young players would opt for a safer route after a string of low scores, but the teenager remains committed to his attacking game. “The ease with which he scored 250 strike rate was amazing. Usually, after three failures, other players try to defend their place in the Indian team by taking singles and twos. But he played fearlessly without worrying about the consequences. Scoring 50 off 18 balls became child’s play for him. That’s his greatness,” added Srikkanth.Sooryavanshi’s explosive innings not only earned him a place in the record books but also cemented his case as one of India’s most exciting young batting talents. Srikkanth’s comments also highlighted the selection problems and team combination questions that India continue to face.