​’I’m liking the vibe here’ – Vaibhav Sooryavanshi on scoring runs at Harare after maiden international 50 originally appeared on Cricket News.
Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.KEY TAKEAWAYS:India win first T20I since World Cup, beat Zimbabwe in Harare.Vaibhav Sooryavanshi smashes 50 off 18 balls, targetted Blessing Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava.Teen stays grounded, credits family, coaches after career-best knock.Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ready to turn up the heat in Harare after maiden half-centuryIndia tasted victory in their first T20I outing since claiming the T20 World Cup back in March, and the headline act belonged to 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who cracked his maiden international half-century off a mere 18 balls to power the win over Zimbabwe.Fittingly, the innings unfolded at the very ground where he had crafted an unforgettable 175 off 80 balls in the 2026 Under-19 World Cup final, and once again he made a fairly straightforward chase look almost effortless.Sooryavanshi tore into the Zimbabwean pace attack from the outset, racing to 48 off just 17 deliveries inside the powerplay before bringing up his fifty with the very next ball he faced. Chasing a target of 126, the youngster found himself up against some of the tallest fast bowlers in world cricket, a fresh challenge given his age and inexperience on the international circuit.His first real test came against Blessing Muzarabani, who greeted him with a sharp bouncer aimed at leg stump. Sooryavanshi attempted an ambitious ramp over the wicketkeeper that didn’t quite come off, but he got off the mark soon after off the same bowler.MORE: Sooryavanshi proves doubters wrong: Historic half-century vs ZIM shows he is ready for international cricketNext came the towering Richard Ngarava, Zimbabwe’s Test and ODI captain, who opened with a probing delivery that swung away and beat the outside edge in classic red-ball fashion.That early pressure didn’t last long. Ngarava’s following ball drifted wide, and Sooryavanshi pounced, stepping inside the line to launch it over backward square leg for six. He followed that up with a boundary through extra cover before depositing another delivery over long-off for a second maximum off the back foot.When Brad Evans replaced Ngarava, his opening two deliveries to Sooryavanshi disappeared for 10 runs, but the teenager reserved his most spectacular shot for Muzarabani once more.In the fifth over, he lofted the bowler over long-on for a towering six, sandwiched between two additional boundaries, producing what many watching would consider the standout stroke of the innings. BCCI/Creimas Vaibhav Sooryavanshi reflects on a special knockSpeaking to BCCI.TV after the match, Sooryavanshi explained that getting an innings like this early in his career gave him a real boost of confidence heading into future games.”When you are in the starting phase of your career and you get these kinds of innings early on, and