In the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) season, Ayush Mhatre joined the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as Ruturaj Gaikwad’s injury substitute. On April 20, he made his debut against the Mumbai Indians at the age of 17, making him the youngest player to play for the five-time winners.
Mumbai cricket fans who pay careful attention would be aware of Mhatre’s incredible talent. Against Maharashtra in the 2024–2025 Ranji Trophy, he scored his first-ever first-class century. The right-handed hitter became the youngest player in men’s List A cricket to score 150 or more runs later in the domestic season.
The young player is in the spotlight after making an impression during his IPL debut, and he hopes to assist CSK in turning things around in the 2025 tournament. But for the 17-year-old, things haven’t been easy from the start.
The young player has also seen some setbacks in his career. In addition to overcoming physical concerns, he has struggled with depression.
Yogesh Mhatre, Ayush Mhatre father, has endured a lot and made some obvious sacrifices to enable his son to do extraordinary things.
Prashant Shetty, Ayush Mhatre coach, shared some of the hardships Yogesh faced and the sacrifices he took to support his son as he set out on his journey to fame. According to Shetty, Yogesh quit his work as a banker to spend more time with his son.
Based in Virar, Ayush Mhatre family is a middle-class home. In addition to balancing his duties as a banker, his father Yogesh would always go with him to matches. It can be quite taxing and challenging to travel for about six hours every day with a bulky kit bag in order to play matches in Mumbai. But Yogesh Sir has always been a really upbeat person and has never spoken anything negative about his kid. He even quit his work as a banker a year ago in order to spend more time with his son, which is a significant sacrifice given their family’s financial situation,” Prashant told TOI.
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