Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s IPL performance leads to BCCI forming new rules for U16 and U19 players

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has formed new rules when it comes to U16 and U19 players’ participation in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in their recent Annual General Meeting (AGM), after reviewing 14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s participation in IPL 2025.

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Suryavanshi was just 13 years and some months old when he was bought in the IPL 2025 mega auction by Rajasthan Royals (RR) for INR 1.10 crores. He made his IPL debut for RR at the age of 14 and hit the first ball he faced for a six. He became the youngest Indian and overall youngest in T20s to hit a century, a feat he achieved against the Gujarat Titans in Jaipur.

Following Suryavanshi's spectacular IPL debut, the International Cricket Council (ICC) was obliged to review the minimum age requirement for senior cricket not long ago. The BCCI was also forced to review its requirements on Sunday.

Suryavanshi dominated IPL 18 at the age of 14, scoring 252 runs in seven games, including a century and a half. His actions raised concerns about the minimum age required to participate in the league, which the board was forced to address at Sunday's BCCI AGM.

BCCI brings in a new rule for U16 and U19 players to become IPL eligible.

MCA rep Sanjay Naik questioned the rules that allowed a 14-year-old to play in the IPL. He drew attention to the fact that, while having a large pool of young players, the MCA itself does not allow under-16 players in its own competition, T20 Mumbai.

He pointed out that under-16 players are currently only allowed to play in T20 formats, which are only played at the senior level, and are not allowed to participate in the IPL.

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Hemang Amin, the CEO of the Indian Premier League, stepped in to clarify that Suryavanshi was permitted to participate because he had previously played first-class cricket. He further informed Naik that after participating in the Ranji Trophy, a player of any age group is entitled to play in the IPL.

The rules of BCCI, which were agreed upon, now read as:

For each season, a U19 player is defined as a cricketer who is under the age of 19 on April 1 of that relevant year. This age cut-off determines who qualifies as a U19 player for the tournament.

An Indian U19 player may only be eligible to register for a Player Auction if, on the date of the auction, the player is registered with a State Association and has played at least one match in either first-class cricket or List A cricket. For clarity, IPL matches are officially recognized as List A cricket.

It should be mentioned that a player is not automatically eligible to sign up for a Player Auction just because they are a member of the India U19 team or squad. Participation in List A or domestic first-class cricket is still required.

Similar to this, an overseas U19 player can only sign up for a player auction if they are registered with their local cricket administration on the day of the auction and have played First-Class or List A cricket in the past. IPL matches are recognized as List A cricket, just like Indian players.

The IPL's eligibility guidelines circulated to franchises make no mention of under-16 players. With the AGM clarifying that Suryavanshi was eligible, as he had already played first-class cricket for Bihar, a precedent appears to have been set.

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