Signing you in

His first delivery, from Pandey, beat him outside off. Jain then beat him with his first ball. There was a sign of impatience when Sooryavanshi attempted a reverse sweep as early as his sixth delivery. But he did not keep looking for the big shot. He got off the mark from his eighth ball with a single to cover and focused largely on rotating the strike.

East managed only 11/0 from their first five overs. By the end of the 10th, they had moved to 25/0. Sooryavanshi was on 16 from 30 balls and Abhimanyu Easwaran nine from 30.

It was very different from the first innings, when Sooryavanshi had gone after Yash Thakur almost immediately and forced Rajat Patidar to station a deep point inside the first 10 overs.

He took 21 balls to hit his first boundary, lofting Pandey over long-on for six. Even that did not lead to a sudden change in approach. Sooryavanshi went back to being patient.

Perhaps it was because East were chasing only 159. Perhaps he felt Central were bowling well and deserved respect. Whatever the reason, it was interesting to see Sooryavanshi play this way. Much of the attention around him has come because of how often he hits boundaries. Here, for a while at least, he was happy not to.

Then, almost without warning, the Sooryavanshi from the first innings returned.

Thakur came from around the wicket in the 14th over, and Sooryavanshi swatted the first ball over mid-wicket for four. The next ball disappeared over long-off for six with a straight bat. Thakur went short with the third, and Sooryavanshi pulled him to fine leg for four. The fourth ball was upper-cut for another boundary.

Four balls had brought 18 runs. After spending most of the innings holding himself back, Sooryavanshi suddenly changed the pace of the chase.

He went after the fifth ball as well, swinging towards mid-wicket. Patidar ran across and completed an excellent catch. Sooryavanshi was gone for 40 from 43 balls.

The innings showed a different side of him. His 92 on Monday had been based on aggression against both pace and spin. He attacked Thakur, used his feet against Jain and continued taking risks even after being dropped on 40.

On Tuesday, the situation was different. East had a target to chase, and Central’s bowlers started well. Sooryavanshi’s response was to wait. There was the temptation to attack and get East off to a flying start, but he resisted it for much of his innings.

That was significant for a young batsman whose attacking game is already well known. But in the second innings, he showed he could spend time at the crease, take singles and wait for a loose delivery.

In the Thakur over he showed that his attacking game was never far away. Once he decided to go, he needed only four balls to change the mood of the innings. The fifth ball, though, showed the other side of playing that way. That is a balance Sooryavanshi will learn with experience. At 15, there is little reason for him to move away from the attacking style that makes him special. But learning when to attack and when to hold back will be an important part of his growth.

For someone still so early in his career, those are lessons that can only come from spending time in the middle. Bowlers will plan for his aggression, fields will change and situations will demand different responses. How Sooryavanshi reacts to those challenges will decide the batsman he becomes.

Tuesday’s innings was a small step in that process. The 40 was not as spectacular as the 92 he had made a day earlier. But the first 30 balls showed something perhaps more important for his development: Sooryavanshi can play another way, too.

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