5 teenagers who took cricketing world by storm

A David competing against a Goliath is always an exciting prospect, for a fan of any sport. Cricket has seen several stunning performances by the younger lot in their teens, emerging triumphant in battles against world-class players. Hasan Raza of Pakistan is the youngest debutant in history of the game; he was only 14 years and 227 days old when he played his first Test against Zimbabwe in 1999. Here is a list of 5 exciting teenagers who impressed one and all with their talents very early on in their careers.Note: The list is in no particular order.

#5 Wasim Akram

The legendary left-arm seamer from Pakistan announced himself to the cricketing world with five-wicket hauls in both the innings of a Test match against New Zealand at Dunedin, 1985, only his second Test, at the age of 18.

Capable of swinging the ball at high speeds, the bowler picked up another 5-for in an ODI against Australia at Melbourne the same month to reaffirm his potential. Easily the greatest left-arm fast bowler to have played the game of cricket, Akram ended his international career with 916 wickets.

#4 Mohammad Amir

Mohammad Amir made a telling impression with his pace and swing at the age of 17. The left-arm seamer proved that he belonged to the international stage during the World T20, 2009, contributing to Pakistan’s title winning run with his 6 wickets at a reasonable economy rate of 7.29.

He was immediately drafted into the Test match set-up where he made a name for himself with three wickets on debut against Sri Lanka. He had pace, bounce and seam movement that matched the world’s bests even at that young age. His 9 wickets in the ODI series that followed in the Island nation came at an impressive average of 20.33 at 4.23 runs per over.

In his final Test series, in England, before being banned for spot-fixing, he picked up 19 wickets at 18.36 runs per dismissal in 7 innings with 2 five-wicket hauls.

#3 Daniel Vettori

The bespectacled Kiwi left-arm spinner made his international debut at the age of 18. His debut turned out to be a less successful one, but he did shine in the next Test, at Christchurch, against England in 1997. If his 4-wicket haul in the second innings was an indication to the quality of his left-arm spin, a match haul of 9-wickets against Sri Lanka at Hamilton later in that year confirmed the beginning of a wonderful career.

He had already made handy scores of 25 and 29* coming in at No.9, giving us a hint of his capabilities with the bat, too.

#2 Shahid Afridi

The hard-hitting Pakistani all-rounder is best remembered for his then fastest ODI hundred: a knock that had 5 fours and 11 sixes and came off just 37 balls against Sri Lanka in only his second ODI, at the age of 17. The right-hander hasn’t looked back since then. His leg-spin fetched him 3/48 in his next match, showcasing his all-round potential so early on in his international career.

On January 1, 2014, New Zealand’s Corey Anderson took a ball less against West Indies to displace Afridi from the top spot in the list of fastest hundreds scored in ODIs.

#1 Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar made his Test and ODI debuts in Pakistan, 1989, at a very young age of 16. All said and done about his talent, the teenager, after scoring 15 in his first Test innings, showed glimpses of a legendary career in the matches that followed.

The Mumbaikar scored a well-made 59 against the likes of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram and Abdul Qadir in his second Test. Coming into bat at 101/4, the then 16-year-old stitched a 143-run 6th-wicket stand with Sanjay Manjrekar.

In the following tour of New Zealand, the right-hander scored 88 at Napier before recording a match-saving century at Manchester against England, 1990. His 119* in an unbroken 160-run partnership with Manoj Prabhakar made the cricketing world take note of the youngster’s arrival.