In India, school level batsmen haven't gone far after riotous batsmen. Barring exceptions like Sachin Tendulkar, most boys like Tejila Tokhar don't make it past school level, much less first class cricket. Vinod Kambli and Prithvi Shaw played for the Indian cricket team but their careers did not last long.
A 13-year-old boy named Yash Chavde from Nagpur, Maharashtra has done a tremendous feat. Playing for Saraswati Vidyalaya in the Mumbai Indians Junior Inter-School Cricket Cup, Yash played a mahatofani innings of 508 runs off 178 balls. There won't be a single corner of the ground at Nagpur's Jhulelal Institute of Technology where Yash Chavde hasn't hit a boundary. Chavde was not out after scoring 508 runs with 81 fours and 18 sixes.
Yash Chavde is the first player to score more than 500 runs in a limited overs match in India so needless to say he has broken the Indian record but is also the second player to score more than 500 runs in a limited overs match in the whole world.
Sri Lanka's Chirath Selleperuma holds the record for most runs in limited overs format globally. Chirath scored 553 runs five months ago i.e. in August 2022 while playing in the under 15 inter-school tournament. Chirathe was the first player in the world to score more than 500 runs in the limited over format and Yash Chavde has become the second player. Yash Chavde also created another record by making a huge partnership of 714 runs in 40 overs with Tilak Wakode.
Chavde's stormy batting is currently being discussed and many enthusiastic people have started talking about the bright future of Indian cricket because of Chavde. Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli came into the limelight when they put on a partnership of 664 runs for Shardashram Vidyamandir in Harish Shield in 1986. Both Sachin and Kambli made it to the Indian team at a very young age so it was expected that strong batsmen at the school level would play in Team India.
It would be good if Chavde lives up to this expectation and brightens the future of Indian cricket, but the record so far says that school-level batsmen have not followed suit. Barring exceptions like Sachin Tendulkar, most boys like Tejila Tokhar don't make it past school level, much less first class cricket. School level stars like Vinod Kambli and Prithvi Shaw also played for the Indian cricket team but their careers did not last very long.
Not only that Chavde's batting is fantastic but like Chavde many other boys have already scored heaps of runs at the school level. Seven years ago, Kalyan's Pranav Dhanavade caused a stir by scoring 1009 runs in an innings. Pranave holds the world record for most runs in an innings in an officially recognized match by the ICC. It is very unlikely that this world record of Dhanavade will be broken in the future. At that time, Dhanavade was also considered the future of Indian cricket, but in the last seven years, Dhanavade could not even enter first class cricket. Given that Dhanavade is now 22 years old, the opportunities for him also decrease.
Sarfraz Khan's name should also be mentioned among the cricketers who made a splash at the school level. When Mumbai's Sarfraz scored 439 runs off 421 balls in the Harris Shield in 2009, there were talks of the rise of another Sachin. Only 12-year-old Sarfraz broke Sachin Tendulkar's 45-year-old record by hitting 56 fours and 12 sixes while playing for his school Rizvi Springfield.
Sarfaraz then got a place in the under-19 team. At the age of just 15, Sarfraz burst onto the scene by batting a storming match-winning 101 off 66 balls against South Africa. He had a good look in that too. In 2015, Sarfaraz also played in the IPL from the Roy Challengers Bangalore team, but he was so stuck in cricket that he could not make a place in the Indian team. Sarfraz is currently playing hard in the Ranji Trophy and racking up runs, but there is no chance of him getting a chance in the Indian team.
Before Yash Chavde, S. was close to 500 runs in the limited overs format. Sankrit Sriram has arrived. Sriram of JSS International School, Ooty, scored an unbeaten 486 runs against Hebron School in the Under-16 competition and set the record for the highest score in the limited overs format in India. Shishir Tiwari and Sufiyan Shaikh of Anjuman-e-Islam School, Mumbai have created a world record partnership of 531 runs for the fifth wicket. Tiwari scored 318 while Sheikh scored 202 runs. Similarly, Hyderabad's Manoj Kumar and Mohammad Shahbaz have made a partnership record of 721 runs. Both shared this partnership in a 40-over match in the Under-13 competition.
These are just a few examples but there are many other such boys who batted tremendously at the school level but then got lost. Among the boys mentioned, except for exceptions like Sachin, Kambli or Sarfraz, most of the boys' names are not remembered by the people. When this boy performs feats, the media takes note, people remember and then forget.
This situation is called pathetic and in a way it is a waste of talent. The reason for this is that even though there is a train of money in cricket in India, there is no structure to promote the new emerging talent. When 12-13 year old boys are batting or bowling strongly at the junior level, they should be given proper training after recognizing their talent. He should be tipped constantly to make his batting international level but there is no such system.
The Cricket Board runs a cricket academy in Bengaluru, but it trains first-class cricketers, not 10-12-year-old boys. Instead, if a hundred boys are selected from all over the country, India will get new talent. Years ago, Australian fast bowler Dennis Lillee created a pace academy from which India got good pace bowlers including Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, Salil Ankola, Abe Kuruvilla. School boys can also be prepared by adopting the same model. Yash Chavde has shown that he has talent. His talent should be made usable for the country.
Five Indians scored 500 plus runs in an innings
Only five players have managed to score 500 or more runs in an innings in an officially recognized match in India. Among these, Pranav Ghanavade scored 1009 runs. Dhanavade holds the world record for most runs in an innings. Apart from Dhanavade, Priyanshu Molia, Prithvi Shaw and Dadi Havewala are the other players to score more than 500 runs in an innings. Among these, cricketers other than Dadi Havewala have scored these runs in junior level matches.
Pranav Dhanavade of Maharashtra Kalyan K.C. Playing on behalf of Gandhi School, scored 1009 unbeaten runs in 327 balls from January 4 to January 6. Dhanavade was the first player in the world to score 1000 runs in an innings in an officially recognized match. Before this, England's schoolboy A.E.J.Collins scored an unbeaten 628 runs in 1999. Dhanavade broke Collins' 116-year-old record.
Priyanshu Molia scored an unbeaten 556 off 319 balls in the Baroda Cricket Association's under tournament in 2018. Dadabhoy Havewala scored 515 runs in Times of India Shield in 1933. Havewala played first class cricket but never played for the Indian team. Prithvi Shaw scored 546 runs in Harris Shield in 2013.
Yash Chavde is still 13 years old while Vadodara's Priyanshu Molia is 17 years old so both have a chance to play for India. Dhanavade is 22 years old but has not been able to show any brilliance since then. Prithvi got a chance in the Indian team but could not establish his place.
