NEW DELHI: Just a few months ago, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi walked off the Harare Sports Club as the hero of India’s Under-19 World Cup triumph. The 15-year-old smashed a sensational 175 off 80 balls against England in the final, helping India win the title by 100 runs.Now, Sooryavanshi is back at the same venue, but this time in the senior India team. India will take on Zimbabwe in a three-match T20I series starting July 23. All three matches will be played at the Harare Sports Club, where the youngster hopes to make fresh memories.Speaking to BCCI.tv, Sooryavanshi said returning to Harare brings back special memories.“Harare kaafi memorable ground hai mere liye. 4 mahine pehle hum Under-19 ka World Cup khele the aur jeete they. India represent karna har kisi ka sapna hota hai. Kaafi special moment hai. Aur itne achhe ground pe jispe humne 4 mahine pehle history create kiya tha uspe wapas se aana aur khelna alag hi maja hai. Enjoy karenge [Harare is a very memorable ground for me. Four months ago, we played and won the Under-19 World Cup here. Representing India is every youngster’s dream, so it is a very special moment. Coming back to the same ground where we created history a few months ago and getting another chance to play here feels amazing. We will enjoy it]”
Sooryavanshi aims to bounce back
Sooryavanshi’s maiden outing in senior India colours did not go as planned. The young batter scored 14, 13 and 15 in three T20Is against England as India lost the five-match series 0-4. In two of those innings, he fell to Jofra Archer’s short-ball.Despite the difficult tour, the youngster said he remains positive and is focused on moving forward.“4 mahine, jaise aapne bola, 4 mahine mein kaafi ups and downs aaye. But cricket ka part hai, life mein aisa chalta rahega. Apan wahi process follow karenge aur team ko apna hundred percent denge. [As you mentioned, the last four months have had plenty of ups and downs. But that’s part of cricket and life. We will keep following the same process and give our hundred percent for the team]”Having already enjoyed success in Harare, Sooryavanshi believes his knowledge of the conditions will help him during the Zimbabwe series.“Pitches aur jo bhi conditions hain, uske baare mein kaafi idea laga tha us time par bhi. Toh try karunga jo mujhe idea laga hai usko match mein apply karne ka aur achha karne ka. Is ground par maine 2 match khele the. Dono kaafi achhe gaye the. Ab try karunga usko carry forward karne ka [I already have a good idea about the pitches and conditions here from last time. I will try to use that experience in the matches and perform well. I have played two matches at this ground, and both went really well. Now I will try to carry that form forward].”“Jo practice mein karte aa rahe hain, usko back karunga. Jo mera game hai, usko back karunga aur team ke liye jo bhi contribution de sakta hoon game mein, woh dene ki try karunga [I will back everything that I have been doing in practice. I will back my game and try to contribute as much as I can for the team]. “India head into the Zimbabwe series after a difficult run, having lost the T20I series 0-2 in Ireland and 0-4 in England under new captain Shreyas Iyer. The team also lost the ODI series 1-2 to England under Shubman Gill.
