At just 14, Vaibhav Suryavanshi has already carved his name into the record books, becoming the youngest-ever to score a century in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The teenage sensation has since continued his blistering form, smashing 143 off 78 balls against the England Under-19 side.

Australia, too, faced his fury when Suryavanshi hammered 104 off just 62 deliveries against the Australia Under-19 team in the first Youth Test held in Chennai.

Also Read: PM Modi hails Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s sensational knock in IPL

Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s IPL feat

However, none of these feats quite matched the spectacle he produced on the night of April 28 this year in Jaipur, when he lit up the Sawai Mansingh Stadium with a breathtaking 35-ball hundred.

The young batter showed no mercy to some of India’s most seasoned bowlers, blasting 101 runs studded with seven fours and eleven sixes, as the Royals chased down 210 inside 16 overs.

Explosions of such magnitude from a 14-year-old are almost unheard of, prompting disbelief even among cricketing greats.

Ravi Shastri recalled how former Australian opener Matthew Hayden refused to believe Suryavanshi’s age.

“I was amazed; I was on air during that game in Jaipur,” Shastri said on the Willow Talk show on the LiSTNR Sport podcast. “By the ninth or tenth over, he had already reached his hundred. He was hitting Mohammed Siraj and Ishant Sharma ten rows back over extra cover and midwicket. Haydos (Matthew Hayden) said, ‘He can’t be 14,’ and I told him, Calm down!” Shastri added.

Ravi Shashtri urges caution

There is no doubting Suryavanshi’s exceptional talent, but Indian cricket has seen many prodigies fade away before fulfilling their potential.

With calls growing for his promotion to First-Class cricket, Shastri cautioned that the coming years would be crucial.

“This is now the toughest period for him,” Shastri observed. “Because he’s made such an impression at such a young age, much like Sachin. Over the next two to three years, he’ll need someone to guide him, as it’s easy to lose direction,” he noted.

“Expectations can get into your head. You’re bound to fail at some stage, and that’s fine. Cricket is a great leveller, you have to accept failure and learn from it.

Once he embraces that, he’ll do well,” Shastri further said.

Also Read: Sourav Ganguly meets Vaibhav Suryavanshi, gives advice

Can Suryavanshi become the next Tendulkar?

Suryavanshi’s rapid rise has already drawn comparisons with legends like Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli. However, Shastri believes it is far too early to place him in that league.

“There’s no question about his talent, but you have to look at how good those players were at that age,” he said.

“If this boy is that good, there’s no reason he shouldn’t play the four-day game.

It’ll help him find the right balance, learning to defend, tighten his technique, and judge which bowlers to see off and which to attack. It’s about respecting the conditions and the good deliveries,” said Shastri.