India’s Under-19 World Cup team of 2026 has some promising names who can play for the national side in the future. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has already become the youngest debutant for India, while Chennai Super Kings star Ayush Mhatre is also touted as a great prospect. 

One more name who is hogging the limelight is fast bowler Deepesh Devendran. The 18-year-old has grabbed the spotlight with his searing pace bowling while playing for Madurai Panthers in the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) 2026 game against Trichy Grand Cholas. 

The right-arm fast bowler clocked the 146 kmph (91 kmph) mark on the speed gun in the game. Deepesh bowled four overs in the contest and gave away just 25 runs and got the wicket of Jaffar Jamal.

What caught the eye of many fans was the fact that the young bowler wasn’t just bowling quickly but also using the slower balls pretty well. 

Such performances will certainly catch the attention of the IPL scouts who will be keen to have the young bowler in their ranks. Chennai Super Kings in particular will be licking their lips as they could potentially have a home-grown pace bowler who can become a key player in the future. Devendran was part of the India U-19 side that won the World Cup as he picked up six wickets in the campaign. 

Vida Kovai Kings beat Salem Spartans by 34 runs

In the latest game that was played on Thursday, the Kovai Kings, led by Gujarat Titans star Shah Rukh Khan, went on to beat Salem by 34 runs. Kovai batted first and scored 194 runs from their 20 overs. B. Sachin was the top scorer with 77 runs from 42 balls with seven boundaries and four sixes. 

Opening batter Abhinav amassed 32 while skipper Shah Rukh posted 27, which came off 18 balls with a boundary and two sixes. Uday Kumar and M Poiyamozhi were the best bowlers for Spartans with three wickets each. 

In reply, Salem were bowled out for a mere 160 in the final over of the innings. Deeban Lingesh’s three-wicket burst put the chasing side under pressure,and they were 8 for 4 at one stage. If it wasn’t for the 69 scored by Nidish Rajagopal, the team could have found itself in an even more dire situation.

Harish Kumar and Mohammed swung their willows to give their team some hope, but that wasn’t enough as they fell short of the target by 34 runs.