The mega auction of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 took place before the completion of the two domestic tournaments in India, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2024 and the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) 2024-25. That hasn’t led most players to showcase their talent before the world, but the young Mumbai player, who was unsold in the bidding war among ten franchises, has created a new record.
None of the teams showed interest in that youngster, who could have earned a few lakhs had the auction taken place after this game between Mumbai and Nagaland. The 17-year-old opening batter for the side, Ayush Mhatre, has set a new world record to be the youngest player to celebrate a 150-plus score in List A cricket.
The right-handed batter has now broken the record of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who held the record since 2019 when he achieved the feat playing for the Mumbai side against Jharkhand in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
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Mhatre did it at the age of 17 years and 168 days, while the current stylish left-handed opening batter of the Indian side, Yashasvi, earned the record at 17 years and 291 days.
Mumbai opener Ayush Mhatre smashes world record at 17 years and 168 days
Winning the toss at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, The Jonathan R-led side decided to bowl first on a surface that is known for high scores across formats. It was a supreme opening partnership of 156 runs in 25 overs between Mhatre and Angkrish Raghuvanshi. The latter cacked 56 runs in 66 deliveries with the help of three boundaries and one six at a strike rate of 84.85.
Jay Bista couldn’t contribute much at the number three position for Mumbai, who arrived in the game with a young side, having rested their top-class players, Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, and Suryakumar Yadav. Siddhesh Lad, at number four, kept the momentum going with his 39-run knock at run-a-ball.
The wicket-keeper batter of the side, Prasad Power, crunched 38 runs in 28 balls, shouldering on one boundary and a couple of sixes. But the stand-out performance of the day was from the appointed leader of the Mumbai pack, Shardul Thakur, who creamed an unbeaten knock of 73 runs in 28 deliveries at a strike rate of 260, shouldering on a couple of boundaries and eight sixes.
Ayush Mhatre, who made his debut for the side earlier in the season, clubbed 11 sixes and 15 boundaries to end on a superb knock of 181 runs in 117 balls, besides powering his side to an incredible 403/7 at the end of their allotted 50 overs. The local boy has been a regular member of the team across formats since breaking into the squad.
He was part of Mumbai’s Irani Cup-winning side that got the better of the Rest of India to take the title after a wait of 27 years in October. During the debut in his Ranji Trophy, Mhatre cracked a famous knock of 52 runs in 71 balls in a game that they went on to lose to Baroda.
The defending champions aimed to bounce back as Mhatre, who now has notched up 309 List-A runs in five innings at 61.80 and a strike rate of nearly 130, charged his way to a brilliant 176-run knock in 232 deliveries, decorated with 22 boundaries and four sixes, against Maharashtra. Mumbai went on to win the game, as the batter, after a few bad games, represented India in the U-19 Men’s Asia Cup.
Mhatre kept the purple patch flowing with 54 and 67* against Japan and UAE. He will now aim to be a regular member of the side and take his career graph sky-high.