Indian cricket witnessed the beginning of a new era as teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi made his senior international debut, becoming the youngest player ever to represent India in men’s or women’s cricket.

The left-handed batter received his maiden India cap ahead of the second T20I against England in Manchester. At 15 years and 99 days, Sooryavanshi broke a long-standing national record previously held by cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, who made his international debut at the age of 16 years and 205 days in 1989.

The milestone also saw Sooryavanshi overtake Shafali Verma, who had been India’s youngest international debutant overall after making her debut at 15 years and 239 days.

Historic moment for Indian cricket

The young opener’s debut had been eagerly anticipated ever since he was included in India’s squads for the Ireland and England T20I series.

Although he did not feature in the matches against Ireland, India initially continued with the experienced opening pair of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma for the opening T20I against England. Following Samson’s struggles with the bat, discussions around Sooryavanshi’s inclusion intensified.

The Indian team management eventually decided to hand the youngster his opportunity, with captain Shreyas Iyer and head coach Gautam Gambhir backing the teenager for his first international appearance. The debut cap was presented to him by Tilak Verma before the Manchester encounter.

Youngest men’s debutants for India

Following his debut, Sooryavanshi now tops the list of India’s youngest men’s international debutants.

• Vaibhav Sooryavanshi – 15 years, 99 days (vs England, July 4, 2026)
• Sachin Tendulkar – 16 years, 205 days (vs Pakistan, November 15, 1989)
• Piyush Chawla – 17 years, 75 days
• Laxman Sivaramakrishnan – 17 years, 118 days
• Parthiv Patel – 17 years, 152 days
• Maninder Singh – 17 years, 193 days

While Sooryavanshi now holds the record for India’s youngest international debutant, Pakistan’s Hasan Raza remains the youngest men’s Test debutant globally at 14 years and 227 days. Romania’s Marian Gherasim continues to hold the record as the youngest international cricketer overall, having debuted in T20Is at 14 years and 16 days.

Shreyas Iyer backs the young opener

Speaking before the match, captain Shreyas Iyer expressed confidence in the youngster’s temperament and ability to perform at the highest level.

Iyer said Sooryavanshi had consistently impressed during training, adding that the teenager deserved his opportunity after displaying fearless batting and showing no signs of pressure despite his age.

IPL heroics paved the way

Sooryavanshi’s selection followed a remarkable IPL 2026 campaign for the Rajasthan Royals, where he emerged as the tournament’s highest run-scorer.

He accumulated 776 runs at a strike rate of 237.30, registering one century and five half-centuries while smashing 72 sixes. His performances earned him multiple individual honours, including the Orange Cap, Most Valuable Player, Emerging Player, Super Striker, and Super Sixes awards.

Strong performances across formats

The teenager has also impressed in domestic and age-group cricket.

During the recent tri-series involving Sri Lanka A and Afghanistan A, he scored 211 runs in five innings, including a match-winning 94 in the final. He also recorded the fastest fifty in List A cricket by reaching the milestone in just 11 balls against Sri Lanka A.

His record in youth cricket has been equally impressive. Sooryavanshi finished as the leading run-scorer at the Under-19 World Cup with 439 runs in seven matches, helping India lift the title. He also set a tournament record by hitting 30 sixes.

Across youth ODIs, he has accumulated 1,412 runs at an average of 56.48, while his T20 numbers include 1,477 runs from 34 innings at a strike rate above 220.

In the IPL, the youngster has already crossed the 1,000-run mark in just 23 innings, underlining the promise that has made him one of India’s brightest emerging talents.

With his record-breaking debut now complete, Indian cricket fans will be hoping that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s international journey lives up to the enormous expectations surrounding one of the country’s most exciting young prospects.

The YRF Spy Universe expands once again with Alpha, marking the franchise’s first female-led action film. After years of male spies dominating the cinematic universe, Alia Bhatt steps into the spotlight as Sita, a genetically enhanced operative entrusted with carrying an ambitious action entertainer almost entirely on her shoulders. While the actor succeeds in making the character memorable through her energetic screen presence and committed action performance, the film’s predictable storyline prevents it from reaching its full potential.

Directed by Shiv Rawail, Alpha combines large-scale action, espionage and superhero-style storytelling. However, despite its impressive visuals and action choreography, the film struggles to offer a fresh narrative in an increasingly crowded spy franchise.

Alia Bhatt delivers one of the film’s biggest strengths

Alia Bhatt undergoes a convincing physical transformation for the role and brings an expressive quality rarely seen in mainstream action heroes. Instead of maintaining a stoic expression throughout combat sequences, she allows her emotions to surface, making every confrontation feel personal.

Her character, Sita, balances confidence, wit and emotional vulnerability. As an orphan raised under extraordinary circumstances, she carries emotional scars beneath her fearless exterior, and Alia effectively captures both sides of the character.

The emotional depth she adds helps elevate scenes that otherwise rely heavily on stylised action.

Familiar story limits the excitement

Despite its promising premise, Alpha follows a storyline that feels heavily inspired by familiar superhero films. Written by Uday Chopra, Shridhar Raghavan and Ishita Moitra, the narrative blends elements of Indian mythology with comic-book style storytelling but offers few genuine surprises.

The story follows Fateh, played by Bobby Deol, a military officer who develops a secret project to create genetically enhanced super soldiers using a serum known as Alpha. After the experiment fails, circumstances lead to the serum being injected into the unborn daughter of Kaul’s wife, altering the child’s genetics before birth.

That child eventually grows up to become Sita, a highly trained operative raised under Fateh’s control.

While the concept has potential, much of the film’s central mystery is revealed through its promotional campaign, leaving only a few surprises for audiences during the actual film.

Action sequences remain consistently engaging

Where Alpha truly succeeds is in its action. The hand-to-hand combat sequences are choreographed with intensity and supported by an energetic background score that keeps the momentum alive.

Sharvari proves to be an equally capable action performer, matching Alia’s intensity in both emotional and combat scenes. Their chemistry suggests an engaging partnership, although the screenplay does not spend enough time exploring their relationship before moving on to larger action set-pieces involving gunfights and helicopters.

Bobby Deol and Anil Kapoor add dramatic weight

The supporting cast significantly strengthens the film.

Bobby Deol makes a commanding antagonist whose calm demeanour contrasts effectively with sudden bursts of violence. His restrained performance makes Fateh an intimidating villain, although the screenplay stops short of giving him a deeper emotional backstory.

Anil Kapoor also leaves a solid impression as Kaul, bringing authority and emotional conviction to his scenes. Together, both actors provide much-needed dramatic weight that helps compensate for the screenplay’s shortcomings.

Verdict

Alpha delivers polished action, committed performances and slick production values, but its familiar superhero-inspired plot prevents it from becoming one of the strongest entries in the YRF Spy Universe. Alia Bhatt leads confidently, Sharvari proves to be an impressive action partner, while Bobby Deol and Anil Kapoor elevate the material whenever they appear. However, the franchise may need fresher storytelling if it hopes to keep audiences invested beyond the spectacle.

Watch official Trailer:

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has declared the result of the CA Foundation exam conducted in May 2026, wherein the pass percentage is recorded as 20.09%. This is a landmark moment for the students who wish to make their careers as chartered accountants, which is the most competitive professional course in the country.

ICAI announced that 1,09,694 students had sat for the exam, of which over 22,000 passed. Officials said a large percentage of the passouts were male.

Students may check their result on the ICAI result portal website using the roll number along with the registration number/PIN allotted. The online result contains the marks scored in each subject and the total marks scored by the candidate. In order to clear the CA Foundation Exam, students need to get a minimum 40% marks in each paper and 50% marks overall in all papers.

Those who have cleared the Foundation exam are eligible to appear in the CA Intermediate exam, which is the next level of the CA course. The CA Foundation exam is the gateway to the CA course and has a tough evaluation system. In every examination cycle, a lot of candidates take this exam making it one of the toughest non-science exams in the country.

With the announcement of the results of May 2026, successful candidates are now in a position to prepare themselves for intermediate level, whereas those who could not pass the examination this time, have been asked to prepare themselves for their next attempt. ICAI has requested all candidates to download and save a copy of their marksheet for future use.