Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, 15, Named Bihar Captain for Two Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy Matches

Two matches in Indore begin a new responsibility

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will captain Bihar against Saurashtra on November 14 and Railways on November 16 in Indore, taking charge of the senior state team for the first time at just 15. The Bihar Cricket Association announced its squad of 17 players on November 6, 2026, with Suraj Kashyap as vice-captain.

His appointment covers those two opening matches of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Sooryavanshi is then scheduled to join India A for the Rising Stars Asia Cup in Doha, where the tournament runs from November 19 to 29. Bihar have not announced who will captain the team after his departure.

Rajasthan Royals, his Indian Premier League franchise, confirmed the appointment in its Bihar squad announcement. The club described it as his first formal appointment as captain for an official match, following earlier roles as vice-captain for Bihar and East Zone.

Bihar assistant coach Ashok Kumar said the opportunity had opened because Sakibul Gani was injured. The decision therefore brings together an immediate team need and a plan to give a young player experience of leadership.

Sooryavanshi arrives with a striking batting record: 776 runs and the Orange Cap in IPL 2026, a century in the previous Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy season, and appearances for India's senior T20 team. His next task is to help decide how an entire side plays, rather than contribute only through his own innings.

Why Bihar chose a captain aged 15

BCA president Harsh Vardhan presented the appointment as a chance for Sooryavanshi to develop alongside the responsibility of representing his state. In the association's announcement, he pointed to the teenager's confidence and maturity.

Vaibhav has already demonstrated tremendous talent, confidence and maturity at a young age, and this responsibility will provide him with another opportunity to grow as a cricketer and leader. We are hopeful that under Vaibhav's leadership, the team will deliver a disciplined, competitive and effective performance while representing the state in the upcoming season.

Ashok Kumar, Bihar's assistant coach, also described the selection as preparation for a longer future with the team.

This is an opportunity for him; we are preparing him for the future, and it also sends a good message to the young players. He is absolutely ready to lead the team.

Bihar's decision gives Sooryavanshi a short initial assignment: two matches before his next representative commitment. Kashyap will support him as vice-captain, while the coaching staff already working with Bihar's Ranji Trophy team will remain with the squad.

Previous leadership experience and a warning from Tendulkar

Sooryavanshi has already served as vice-captain of Bihar in the Ranji Trophy and East Zone in the Duleep Trophy. Both competitions involve the longer form of domestic cricket. East Zone won this year's Duleep Trophy under Ishan Kishan.

Rajasthan Royals said Sooryavanshi briefly took charge during the Duleep Trophy semi-final when Kishan temporarily left the field. His Bihar appointment now gives him responsibility from the start of a match.

His coach, Manish Ojha, said the teenager had handled the earlier vice-captaincy role well and described the new appointment as a proud moment for the player, his family and coaching staff.

Former India batter Sachin Tendulkar offered a more cautious view earlier in the week. Asked during a Reddit question session about Sooryavanshi's Duleep Trophy vice-captaincy, Tendulkar said:

I feel it's too early for him to become a vice-captain in the Duleep Trophy. We have to let him play more matches with the red ball and take one step at a time.

Sooryavanshi had played eight first-class matches for Bihar when that appointment attracted criticism. Tendulkar's concern focused on giving him more experience in longer matches, where batters must build innings over extended periods. Bihar's coaches, by contrast, see the new T20 assignment as a useful step in his development.

The batting record behind the appointment

Sooryavanshi finished IPL 2026 as the leading scorer with 776 runs in 16 innings for Rajasthan Royals. He won the Orange Cap, the award for the tournament's highest run total, and became its youngest recipient, according to the franchise.

His strike rate was 237.30. In cricket, strike rate measures runs scored per 100 balls faced, so that figure describes a pace of more than two runs per delivery. Across those 16 innings, his 776 runs also work out to 48.5 runs per innings.

His success extended beyond franchise cricket. In the 2026 Under-19 World Cup final, he scored 175 from 80 balls as India beat England by 100 runs. He was named Player of the Tournament.

Bihar have already benefited from his batting in the competition he is about to captain them in. Rajasthan Royals said he became the youngest player to appear in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy when he made his debut at 13 in 2024. In 2025, he became its youngest century scorer with an unbeaten 108 against Maharashtra.

Those performances give his appointment a firm connection to the tournament itself. He returns with experience of scoring heavily for Bihar in this format, alongside a much larger profile built through the IPL and international cricket.

What his India appearances add

Sooryavanshi made his T20 international debut against England in Manchester in July. Rajasthan Royals said he became India's youngest international cricketer and later its youngest player to score a fifty in senior T20 internationals, during the tour of Zimbabwe.

His record now stands at 295 runs in 10 T20 internationals, with an average of 29.5, a strike rate of 185.53 and two half-centuries. His scores in the second and third matches of the recent New Zealand series were 4 and 45.

In the third match, Sooryavanshi and Abhishek Sharma put on 118 without losing a wicket in the first six overs, setting a record for the highest powerplay total in men's T20 internationals. The powerplay is the opening period when tighter limits on fielders near the boundary give batters more room to attack.

Their opening partnership reached 133 from 43 balls. Sooryavanshi made 45 from 19 deliveries, while Abhishek finished with 113 from 38. India won the series 3-2.

Sooryavanshi has played 44 T20 matches, including 23 for Rajasthan Royals and 10 for India. Those two teams account for 33 of his 44 appearances, or three quarters of his experience in the format. Bihar are placing their trust in a teenager who has already spent much of his T20 career facing IPL and international opposition.

A November schedule across two countries

Bihar are in Elite Group B alongside Saurashtra, Railways, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, and Tamil Nadu. The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, is the domestic T20 competition for state and institutional teams. Its 2026 season runs from November 14 to December 6.

Sooryavanshi's schedule moves quickly from state captaincy in Indore to India A duty in Qatar. India A is a representative team that gives players opportunities below the senior national side. The Rising Stars Asia Cup will use the 50-over format this year, requiring a change from the 20 overs each side receives in T20 cricket.

• November 4 to 6: Bihar held selection trials.
• November 6: The senior selection committee finalised the squad and the BCA announced Sooryavanshi as captain.
• November 14: Bihar play Saurashtra in Indore.
• November 16: Bihar play Railways in Indore.
• November 19 to 29: Doha hosts the Rising Stars Asia Cup.
• November 20, 22 and 24: India A face Nepal, Pakistan A and the UAE, respectively.
• December 6: The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy concludes.

Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma and Harshit Rana have also been named in the India A squad. For Sooryavanshi, the calendar leaves only a short interval between his second match as Bihar captain and India's opening fixture in Doha.

How the selectors built Bihar's squad

Bihar's senior selection committee met on November 6 after trials held from November 4 to 6. The committee considered performances at the trials alongside players' previous records.

Chairman Harvinder Singh and member Amitabh Vijayvargiya attended the meeting, while selector S. Sarath joined by telephone. Harvinder and Vijayvargiya will also travel to Indore to observe the team's matches.

The BCA named two wicketkeepers in the squad, Ayush Loharuka and Anmol Kumar. The full group selected for the opening two matches is:

• Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, captain; Suraj Kashyap, vice-captain.
• Ayush Loharuka and Anmol Kumar, wicketkeepers.
• Alok Kumar, Altamash Ashraf, Param Kumar Singh and Ritwik Raj.
• Mayank Kumar, Raghvendra Pratap, Ashish Kumar and Vasudev Pratap Singh.
• Mohammad Izhar, Amod Yadav, Prashant Singh, Nawaz Khan and Himanshu Singh.

BCA administrator Ashwini Kumar Singh, a former Patna High Court judge, joined Vardhan and other association officials in congratulating Sooryavanshi. The existing Ranji Trophy support staff will continue with the team throughout the tournament, providing continuity while the captain changes.

Fitness decisions and the reserve players

Mangal Mahour and Shakib Hussain remain subject to fitness assessments after Bihar's first two matches. The selectors will decide their availability after those checks, so neither has an unconditional place alongside the 17 players announced for the opening fixtures.

Bihar also named 16 standbys. These are reserve players who may be considered if the squad needs changes:

• Bipin Saurabh, Suman Kumar, Akash Raj and Khalid Alam.
• Bhaskar Dubey, Kumar Rajnish, Suyash and Abhijeet Saket.
• Yashasvi Rishabh, Lakhan Raja, Pawan Kumar and Amit Chaudhary.
• Piyush Singh, Bhanu Kumar, Lokesh Babulal Kumar and Prashant Srivastava.

The fitness review and Sooryavanshi's planned departure make the end of the Railways match a natural point for Bihar to reassess their personnel. The first two fixtures will give the selectors a chance to watch the chosen players in competition before making further decisions.

The Essentials

• Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, 15, will lead Bihar's senior team for the first time.
• His appointment covers Saurashtra on November 14 and Railways on November 16, both in Indore.
• Suraj Kashyap is vice-captain of the squad of 17 players.
• Assistant coach Ashok Kumar said Sakibul Gani's injury created the opening for Sooryavanshi.
• Sooryavanshi is scheduled to join India A for the Rising Stars Asia Cup in Doha after the two matches.
• Mangal Mahour and Shakib Hussain face fitness assessments after Bihar's opening fixtures; 16 players are on standby.
• Bihar's Ranji Trophy support staff will remain with the squad, and two selectors will observe the matches in Indore.