Who Is Ayush Mhatre? Everything You Need to Know About the Viral Sensation Dominating Social Media

Rising teen sensation Ayush Mhatre lit up the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday evening, hammering Gujarat Titans left-armer Arshad Khan for 28 runs in a single over—6, 6, 4, 4, 6—to propel Chennai Super Kings to their joint-highest power-play tally of the season, 68/1 in six overs. The 17-year-old opener’s 17-ball 34 not only revived CSK’s faltering IPL 2025 campaign but also sparked comparisons with boyhood idol Rohit Sharma, with #MiniRohit trending across X and Instagram within minutes. Who is Ayush Mhatre? • Age: 17; Role: left-hand opening batter; Hails from: Dadar, Mumbai • Domestic highlights: Youngest Indian to smash a 150-plus score in List A cricket, breaking Yashasvi Jaiswal’s record on 31 Dec 2024. • IPL contract: Picked up by CSK at ₹1 crore ahead of the 2025 season; strike-rate before Sunday’s game—157.14 in seven innings. Record-breaking over vs Gujarat Titans Coming in after Devon Conway’s early exit, Mhatre launched into Arshad Khan in the fourth over: 96 metre slog-sweep, straight-drive six, two lofted fours over cover, and a final pick-up over square-leg. The assault matched CSK’s best power-play burst of the year, equalling their 68/3 against Rajasthan Royals in Delhi. Captaincy call-up for England tour Barely 48 hours before his Ahmedabad heroics, the Mumbai prodigy was named captain of India’s 16-member Under-19 squad that will contest five ODIs and two four-day matches in England this July. Fellow prodigy Vaibhav Suryavanshi, only 14, joins him at the top of the order. Selectors lauded Mhatre’s “temperament under pressure” after his 624 runs at 52.0 in the Cooch Behar Trophy and two clutch half-centuries for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy knock-outs. Social-media eruption • India Today clipped the 28-run over, racking up 2 million views in 15 minutes and tagging him “Mini Rohit”. • Former CSK opener Matthew Hayden tweeted, “Footwork of a veteran, fearlessness of a teenager—remember the name.” • CSK legend MS Dhoni, mic’d up at mid-off, was heard telling teammates, “Let him play his shots; the kid’s in the zone.” What’s next? CSK still need a miracle string of results to sneak into the playoffs, but Mhatre’s strike-rate surge gives them renewed belief ahead of their final league fixture in Chennai. After the IPL, he will head straight to the National Cricket Academy camp in Bengaluru for a week-long conditioning program before leading India U-19 in seaming English conditions. Bottom line An IPL cameo lasting just 17 balls has fast-tracked Ayush Mhatre from domestic wonder kid to primetime star. With leadership duties awaiting overseas and CSK banking on his fearless hitting, the left-hander has a packed calendar—and India’s cricket faithful have a new name to bookmark.