Ayush Mhatre wrote history on the last day of 2024. The 17-year-old Mumbai batter smashed a stunning 181 off 117 balls against Nagaland in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. In the process, he became the youngest-ever batter to hit a 150+ score in a List ‘A’ game.
The Mumbai-born batter broke the record set by his own statemate, Yashasvi Jaiswal. The left-handed opener had racked up a superb 203 off 154 balls against Jharkhand back in October 2019. Jaiswal was 17 years and 291 days when he achieved the feat and Mhatre set the record with 17 years and 168 days. However, Jaiswal still holds the record for being the youngest-ever batter to get a List ‘A’ double hundred.
Mhatre smashed 15 fours and 11 sixes in his record 181-run knock as Mumbai piled up 403/7 in 50 overs. Nagaland could only manage 214/9 and lost by 189 runs.
Mhatre’s impressive debut season
Mhatre has made his debut only this season for Mumbai. In the 50-over format, he scored 78 on debut against Karnataka before setting the new record with 181 against Nagaland in his 5th List ‘A’ game. He has also impressed with the ball. The 17-year-old has rolled his arm over in a couple of matches and has picked up four wickets at an economy rate of 5.44.
He played six matches in the Ranji Trophy, scoring 441 runs at an average of 40.09. He has struck two tons and a fifty already. His maiden first-class century came against Maharashtra when he scored 176 off 232 deliveries, hitting 22 fours along with four sixes. He got another ton against Services as he made 116 off 149 balls.
Mhatre also featured in the Men’s Under-19s Asia Cup and played a vital role in India’s run till the final where they lost to Bangladesh. He scored 176 runs with the bat in five games. He struck two half-centuries and had an excellent strike-rate of 135.38 in the tournament. He was handy with the ball too as his off-spin yielded six wickets at an economy rate of 3.96.
The 17-year-old Mumbai cricketer was one of the youngest players in the IPL auction for the 2025 season. However, he went unsold. According to a report on Times of India, Mhatre was a part of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) trials and MS Dhoni was impressed with his skills. But he found no buyers. He is very young and seems to have already shown a lot of potential.
