The 20-20 format has always been a batting-friendly format compared to bowlers. Especially, in IPL, fans have always witnessed big scores on the board or big scores getting chased easily over the years. IPL has provided a platform for exceptional talent, where young cricketers can showcase their skills on a grand stage. The Orange Cap is an illustrious accolade awarded to the batsman with the most runs in a single IPL season. While experienced and established players often dominate the list of Orange Cap winners, there have been a few remarkable instances where young prodigies have etched their names in IPL history. In this article, we delve into the extraordinary achievements of the youngest players to ever win the Orange Cap in IPL.

Also Read: Orange Cap winners list in IPL since 2008

Youngest player to win the Orange Cap in IPL:

1. Shubman Gill (23 Years)

Shubman Gill, representing the Gujrat Titans, became the youngest player to clinch the Orange Cap in the IPL 2023 season at the tender age of 23. Displaying immense maturity and composure, Gill amassed 890 runs in 17 matches, showcasing his remarkable technique and ability to anchor an innings with 3 centuries and 4 half centuries. His remarkable innings of 129 runs in 60 balls earned him widespread recognition as one of India's most promising batting talents.

2. Ruturaj Gaikwad (24 Years)

This CSK opener comes at the second position in the chart as he won the Orange Cap in IPL 2021 at the age of 24 years. Thus, Ruturaj Gaikwad became the second youngest player to manage this achievement. His best knock came against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at Abu Dhabi when he smashed his maiden IPL ton. Gaikwad scored 101* runs off 60 balls, including nine fours and five sixes. His form was crucial as CSK won that edition after defeating Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the final. In that season, he scored 564 runs in 15 matches, at an average of 43.38 and a strike rate of 146.88. He also notched up four fifties and his highest score in this season is 92 runs.

Also Read: IPL 2023 Stats

3. Shaun Marsh (24 Years)

This veteran Aussie batter lit up the tournament in its inaugural season by winning the Orange Cap. At that time, Shaun Marsh was 24 years old. In IPL 2008, Marsh scored 616 runs in 11 matches, at an average of 68.44 and a strike rate of 139.6. He also notched up one century and five half centuries. His best knock came against the eventual champion of that season, RR in the 56th match of the tournament. Marsh scored 115 runs off 69 balls, including 11 fours and seven sixes. His form helped Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) to qualify for the playoffs. But, they lost against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the second semi-final.   

4. Virat Kohli (27 Years)

Virat Kohli is in the fourth position by winning the Orange Cap in IPL at the age of 28. In IPL 2016, Virat Kohli, playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore, achieve this feat with 973 runs in 16 matches, at an average of 81.08 and a strike rate of 152.03. He smashed four centuries and seven fifties. With this, he also broke the record for most runs in an IPL season. He also smashed four centuries, the most by any player. His highest score of the season was 113.

Also Read: The highest run-getter in every season of IPL till now

5. Kane Williamson (27 Years)

Former New Zealand captain Kane Williamson was the winner of Orange Cap in IPL 2018. Playing for the Sunrisers Hyderabad, he smashed 735 runs in 17 innings with an average of 52.50 and a strike rate of 142.44. He smashed only eight fifties. His highest score of the season was 84 runs off 51 balls against the Chennai Super Kings.

Imagine what you're doing at the age of 13. You probably were going to a school or playing at a local sports academy. But can you imagine at 13 years old age you can become a crorepati in India playing professional cricket? Yes, you can if you are Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who was picked by Rajasthan Royals at a whooping 1.10 crore rupees in the recently concluded IPL 2025 mega auction.

After the mega auction, Vaibhav was a household name in India. But, you will be shocked knowing that he has been playing cricket under BCCI since the age of eight and has already played at the first-class level. He has already featured in five first-class matches and played a T20 game for Bihar earlier this year.

Moreover, he became the youngest overall and fastest India centurion in Youth Test Cricket's history, when he slammed a 58-ball ton in an unofficial test against Australia at M.A Chidambaram earlier this year.

After his record-breaking inning, Sportz Point got to have a word with the young sensation during the Bengal vs Bihar Ranji Trophy match, which was called off due to rain and wet outfield. Vaibhav at that time had revealed that all of his aggression and quick scoring come naturally to him and he is a great fan of Brian Lara. As a left-handed batter, he loves to watch the former West Indian legend's old highlights and how he used to dominate bowlers during his era.

Read Also | IPL 2025 Auction: Top 10 Most Expensive players of the auction

Vaibhav has been getting support from his family, friends and coaches from an early age to get where he is currently. Bihar's head coach Ashok Kumar is one of those coaches who has helped the teenager to be able to come this far now. After his record-breaking IPL deal with Rajasthan Royals, Sportz Point got to know more about Vaibhav via Ashok Kumar.

A few players like Akash Deep and Mukesh Kumar, who are actually from Bihar, had to move to Kolkata for better opportunities in cricket. Due to the lack of infrastructure and exposure, many players from the state have gone unnoticed in recent decades. But, this was not the case for a sensational talent like Vaibhav and for that, Ashok Kumar wants to thank the Bihar Cricket Association for giving this "once in a generation" talent a chance so early.

"Congrats to Vaihav. He is a great talent we all know. I have been watching him since he got the chance in the Bihar U-19 team. Watching this kid grow as a player, has been remarkable for me and everyone in Bihar," Ashok Kumar told Sportz Point.

"But, I want to thank and congratulate everyone associated with Bihar Cricket Association for identifying this talent and giving him a chance so early in his career," he added.

Vaibhav from his early days had the skill and temperament to dominate senior bowlers and score big runs. He burst onto the scene with an unbeaten 332 in a U-19 tournament in Bihar;  Randhir Verma Tournament. Ashok Kumar wants Vaibhav to continue with the intent which has helped him so far.

"I have been fortunate to coach the Bihar U-19 and senior team and have seen him up and close in the last few years. I know, with time, many teams will try to watch out for a weakness in his batting. But, the only thing that I always advise him is to keep the intent he has as a batter. He is not afraid of any bowler and his natural ability to hit bowlers will take him very far in his career," Ashok Kumar expressed.

Vaibhav's father Sanjeev Suryavanshi has been his formal coach. He also consults Wasim Jaffer from time to time for advice, whom he had met during a U-19 tournament in Bangladesh in November 2023. Luckily for the youngster, he will now be coached by former Indian Men's team head coach Rahul Dravid, who has developed many U-19 stars into future Indian players during his time with the U-19 and senior team.

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Also, Rahul Dravid and Rajasthan Royals were the franchise that gave young Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Riyan Parag an early chance in the Indian Premier League to showcase their talent. Ashok Kumar feels, that having Rahul Dravid as his coach will only enhance him as an overall player and a human being.

"With Rahul Dravid sir, we all know Vaibhav will learn a lot of great things about his game and I feel his time at the Rajasthan Royals will help him be more disciplined as well. Rajasthan Royals have helped a lot of young players in the past and I am hopeful Vaibhav will also emerge as one of the stars from the franchise," Ashok Kumar stated.

"Vaibhav's presence in the Indian Premier League and the U-19 team will influence many kids in the state to play cricket. They will now believe that if you have the talent and work hard on it, anyone can play at the highest level even from states like Bihar. I feel, a brighter time coming for Bihar State Cricket, via champion players like Vaibhav." 

Pink Ball Test, a five-day match contested under lights like a One Day International, was first held in November 2015 after a lot of trials in First-Class cricket across the globe. Day-Night Test was introduced to add more to the longer format as white-ball especially the T20s has taken over the game with crowds preferring the shorter format.

Also Read: Border–Gavaskar Trophy: India's record in Pink Ball Test

India are set to play their second Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Adelaide. After winning the Perth Test match by a massive margin of 295 runs, India will face Australia against the pink ball, under lights. So before the start of the series, let's take a look at the Indian batters who scored the most runs in the Pink Ball Test. 

1# Virat Kohli | 277 Runs

Former Indian skipper Virat Kohli has a fine record against the pink-ball, having played all of India's four pink-ball matches so far. He leads the scoring chart in pink ball Test cricket for India. In six innings so far, he has scored 277 runs at an average of 46.16, with a century and fifty. His knock of 136* against Bangladesh in 2019 at Kolkata is the only century by an Indian in a pink-ball Test.

After having overcome a lean patch of form with a century at Perth, Virat would be raring to continue his golden run in Australia and at the Adelaide Oval.

2# Rohit Sharma | 173 Runs

Indian team captain Rohit Sharma comes second on the list scoring just one half-century in Pink Ball Tests, accumulating 173 runs in five matches at an average of 39. This will be Rohit Sharma’s first Day-Night Test match on foreign soil, as all three of his previous Pink Ball Tests were played in India. 

As an opener, Rohit will need to weather the new ball, especially during twilight and night sessions when the pink ball is at its most ferocious. It will be quite interesting to see how Rohit goes about his business in the upcoming game.

3# Shreyas Iyer | 159 Runs

Shreyas Iyer has played just one day-night Test match and has scored 159 runs in it. He put up knocks of 92 and 67 in the second test between India and Sri Lanka in 2022. India were 86/4 after electing to bat. Iyer shone with a blistering 92 off 98 deliveries, whipping 10 fours and four maximums. He played with the tail-enders and was the last man to be dismissed (252/10). India eventually won by 238 runs.

4# Ajinkya Rahane | 100 Runs

Ajinkya Rahane comes in 4th place with 100 runs in 3 matches. Rahane also scored a half-century against Bangladesh in 2019.

5# Cheteshwar Pujara | 98 Runs

Cheteshwar Pujara is 5th on this list. He has amassed just 98 runs in 3 day-night Test matches. Pujara put up knocks of 55 and 43 against Bangladesh and Australia respectively. 

The second match of the five-match Border–Gavaskar Trophy series between India and Australia will be played in Adelaide from December 6. This will be a day-night test played with the pink ball. 

The good thing for India is that regular captain Rohit Sharma has returned. Apart from this, Shubman Gill is also on the verge of becoming fit. With the return of these two, Indian batting will become stronger. However, the team management will be worried about the playing 11. Fitting Rohit and Gill into a winning combination is a matter of concern.

Also Read: Indian captains to win POTM awards in Australia in Tests

It is considered certain that Devdutt Padikkal will sit on the bench. Apart from this, Dhruv Jurel can also be seen sitting on the bench. The biggest problem will be whether KL Rahul will be sent to open or he will be sent back to number five. Before that let us look at India's statistics in Day-Night Test or Pink Ball Test.

India has played four pink ball tests so far

India has played four day-night tests so far. Out of these, they have won in three, while they have faced defeat in one. Team India has won 75 percent of the matches in the day-night test. The only Test in which the Indian team lost was played in Adelaide four years ago. This was the first Test of India's tour of Australia in the 2020/21 Border–Gavaskar Trophy. Team India, captained by Virat Kohli, had to face a crushing defeat by eight wickets.

What happened in the India-Australia match in Adelaide in 2020?

Batting first in Adelaide, India had scored 244 runs. Cheteshwar Pujara scored 43 runs and Ajinkya Rahane 42 runs. In reply, Australia's first innings was limited to 191 runs. Marnus Labuschagne scored 47 runs and captain Tim Paine scored 73 runs.

The Indian team was devastated in the second innings and was reduced to just 36 runs. This is also India's lowest score in Tests. Cummins and Hazlewood took four and five wickets respectively. India had set a target of 90 runs by taking the lead against Australia. Australia won the match by scoring 93 runs for two wickets. Matthew Wade scored 33 runs, while Joe Burns remained unbeaten on 51 runs.

India played first pink ball test in 2019

India played its first pink ball test against Bangladesh in 2019 at Eden Gardens, Kolkata and won by 46 runs. After this, after playing against Australia in 2020, Team India defeated England by 10 wickets in the day-night test in Ahmedabad in February 2021 and then Sri Lanka by 238 runs in Bengaluru in March 2022. India's highest score in the day-night test is 347/9.

Indian batter who scored most runs in pink ball test

Virat Kohli has scored the most runs for India in the day-night test. He has scored 277 runs in four such matches at an average of 46.16. At the same time, Rohit Sharma is at second place with 173 runs in three matches at an average of 43.25. Shreyas Iyer is at third place in the list. He has scored 155 runs at an average of 79.50. 

Whereas, if we talk about bowlers, Ravichandran Ashwin has taken the most wickets for India in the day-night test. He has taken 18 wickets in four such matches. At the same time, Akshar Patel has taken 14 wickets in two pink ball tests. Umesh Yadav has taken 11 wickets in two such matches.

Also Read: Highest catches dropped percentages since 2011 (Min 100 chances) | Virat tops the list among batters

Highest runs for India in day-night test

Most wickets for India in day-night test

Australia's figures in day night test

Australia has an exceptional record in day night tests. They have played 12 day-night tests so far, out of which they have won 11 while losing only one. What makes their record even more impressive is that their wins have come against different opponents. These include India, England, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies. Australia defeated New Zealand by three wickets in the first international day-night Test in Adelaide in 2015. 

The matter of concern for Australia is that Josh Hazlewood, who wreaked havoc in 2020, will not play in the second Test of the Border–Gavaskar Trophy due to injury.

India beat Prime Minister XI in the IND vs AUS PM XI 2-day practice match at the Manuka Oval in Canberra. The first day's play could not be played on Saturday (30 November) due to rain and on Day 2, the game was reduced to 46 overs per side.

A five-Test series is being played between IND vs AUS. Team India won the first match of this series by 295 runs. The Indian team is currently leading 1-0 in this series. The next match is to be played in Adelaide. This match will be played with pink ball in day-night format. Team India is preparing for this match.

To strengthen its hold in the Pink Ball Test, the Indian team played a two-day practice match against Australia's Prime Minister's XI. Where the India defeated PM XI in a one-sided manner. Team India won this match by 6 wickets.

Also Read: Border–Gavaskar Trophy: India's record in Pink Ball Test

The first day of the practice match played between IND vs AUS PM XI was washed out due to rain. Due to this, the match was played with some new rules on the second day. Where both the teams got a chance to bat 46-46 overs. Whichever team scores the most runs wins.

Indian captain Rohit Sharma won the toss in this match and decided to bowl first. After which the team of Prime Minister XI came on the field to bat first. His team was all out on the score of 240 runs in 43.2 overs.

For that, 19-year-old batsman Sam Konstas scored 107 runs. Harshit Rana took a maximum 4 wickets for India.

In reply, the Indian team played a full 46 overs and scored 257 runs at the loss of 5 wickets. India's score was higher than Australia's. Due to which Team India was declared the winner of this match. 

Gill scored a brilliant half-century 

Returning from injury, Shubman Gill scored a brilliant half-century in this match. He retired after playing an innings of 50 runs in 62 balls. Before this, opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was out after scoring 45 runs. His partner KL Rahul added 27 runs. Captain Rohit Sharma's bat did not work. He could score only 3 runs.

Young Nitish Reddy once again impressed with his batting and scored an inning of 42 runs in 32 balls. Washington Sundar remained unbeaten after scoring 42 runs. Devdutt Padikkal returned unbeaten on 4 runs. Sarfaraz Khan was out on 1 run while Ravindra Jadeja scored 27 runs.

Indian men's cricket team will play a single day of match practice with the pink ball to prepare for the Adelaide's day-night Test after Saturday's play against the Prime Minister's XI was abandoned due to rain at the Canberra's Manuka Oval. India were supposed the play a two-day practice match. But, it is now reduced to a single-day match due to rain.

The men in blue were hoping to get going with the preparation for the pink ball test match after dismantaling the Aussie team in the first test at Perth. However, the Indian test captain Rohit Sharma arrived late and along with him, Shubman Gill, who was injured in the first test, were keen to get some practice match before the second test.

Rohit did have some go in the nets against the Indian bowlers while Shubman Gill had a great traninig session at Canberra after returning from the thumb injury.

Shubman Gill hits the nets for the first time since his thumb injury that forced him to miss the Perth Test.

Here’s how the star batter is shaping up! #TeamIndia | #AUSvIND | @ShubmanGill pic.twitter.com/sZtbvQhgLn— BCCI (@BCCI) November 29, 2024

"It was my first day (training) and I just wanted to get a feel to see how the injury is reacting, if there was any jarring or soreness.

"It actually went much better than I expected and I'm very happy with that," Shubman Gill told the BCCI media after the training. If the weather allows, Gautam Gambhir and management will be able to take a look at the young batter.

In his absensce, Devdutt Padikkal was given a chance in the first test, who failed to score big and Gill will surely come straight in the playing eleven. With Rohit coming back, KL Rahul will be pushed back in the middle order to strenthen the batting line up. 

For Australia, Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the pink-ball test due to side injury. He will be replaced by Scott Boland in the squad, who will play for the Primer Minister's XI as well. 

Both teams will play a 50-overs per side match.

Read Also | Indian captains to win POTM awards in Australia in Tests

Prime Minister's XI v India day two session times

First innings: 9:10 am-12.40 pm IST

Interval: 12.40 pm-1.10 pm IST

Second innings: 1.10 pm- 4.40 pm IST

Squads for the Prime Minister's XI v India match

Prime Minister's XI squad: Jack Edwards (c), Charlie Anderson, Mahli Beardman, Scott Boland, Jack Clayton, Aidan O'Connor, Ollie Davies, Jayden Goodwin, Sam Harper, Hanno Jacobs, Sam Konstas, Lloyd Pope, Matthew Renshaw, Jem Ryan

India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, R Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar.