Mumbai, a city which has produced several record-breaking batsmen, found yet another child prodigy when Armaan Jaffer, nephew of Mumbai Ranji captain and former India opener Wasim, compiled the highest-ever score of 498 in school cricket history.
Armaan, playing for Bandra school Rizvi Springfield against Raja Shivaji of Dadar, struck as many as 77 fours in 490 balls at the Karnatak Sports Association ground at Cross Maidan in South Mumbai before he was caught behind two short of a well-deserved 500.
It was a chanceless knock by Armaan in his school's Giles Shield (under-14) league match. The knock obliterated the earlier record of 366 that stood in the name of Parikshat Walsankar of IES Sune Guruji, the English medium school of Raja Shivaji Vidhyalaya.
Armaan, who was 295 not out on Tuesday, later said Sachin Tendulkar, who had created the world record school-level partnership of 664 with Vinod Kambli in the Harris Shield, was his idol.
"Sachin Tendulkar is my idol. I was not looking to set records but wanted to bat as long as possible," he said, after his marathon knock lasting more than eight hours.
Armaan's innings helped Rizvi declare their innings closed at 800 for 8.
Image: Rizvi Sports Club secretary and Rizvi Education Society Trustee Javed Rizvi (centre) and coach Raju Pathak (left) felicitate Armaan Jaffer