Fourteen-year-old batting sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi has been appointed vice-captain of Bihar for the upcoming Ranji Trophy 2025–26 season, marking a major milestone in the young cricketer’s meteoric rise. The prodigious left-hander will serve as deputy to captain Sakibul Gani for the first two matches of Bihar’s Plate Group campaign, which begins on October 15.
Bihar will kick off its season against Arunachal Pradesh in Patna before facing Manipur in Nadiad from October 25. The decision to elevate Suryavanshi to a leadership role shows the faith the Bihar Cricket Association has in the teenager’s temperament and potential.
Suryavanshi has been one of India’s brightest youth prospects in recent months. Fresh from a successful tour of Australia with the Indian Under-19 team, he played a starring role in both the Youth Tests and One-Dayers. The Patna-born batter struck a 78-ball century in the first Youth Test in Brisbane and finished as the second-highest run-scorer of the two-match series with 133 runs in three innings, helping India whitewash Australia 2-0.
In the preceding Youth ODI series, Suryavanshi scored 124 runs in three matches, including a fluent 68-ball 70 in the second game, as India clinched the series 3-0. Earlier this year, his explosive form continued against England, where he amassed 355 runs in five Youth One-Dayers at a staggering strike rate of 174.01, finishing as the leading run-getter of the series.
However, his performances in red-ball cricket remain a work in progress. In five First-Class games over the past two Ranji seasons, he has scored only 100 runs at an average of 10, with a highest score of 41. This season’s Ranji Trophy presents him with a golden chance to translate his white-ball dominance into long-format success.
Suryavanshi first caught national attention earlier this year when he became the youngest centurion in Indian Premier League (IPL) history, blasting a 38-ball 101 for Rajasthan Royals against Gujarat Titans. His 35-ball hundred was the second-fastest ton ever in the IPL, cementing his reputation as one of India’s most exciting young batting talents.
The Bihar squad for the first two Ranji matches includes: Piyush Kumar Singh, Bhashkar Dubey, Sakibul Gani (captain), Vaibhav Suryavanshi (vice-captain), Arnav Kishor, Ayush Loharuka, Bipin Saurabh, Amod Yadav, Nawaz Khan, Sakib Hussain, Raghvendra Pratap Singh, Sachin Kumar Singh, Himanshu Singh, Khalid Alam, and Sachin Kumar.
As Bihar begins its campaign, all eyes will be on the teenage vice-captain — a player already tipped to be one of the next big names in Indian cricket.
