Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Tells Sunil Gavaskar: 'Started Red-Ball Practice, But keeping Details Secret'
Rajasthan Royals sensation has already set his sights on what he views as the greatest challenge of his career following an IPL season that broke all previous records.
Ankush Pandey
At the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday night, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who is only 15 years old and in his second IPL season, almost won every batting award. Sooryavanshi earned the Emerging Player title, the Orange Cap, the Super Striker honour, and the Most Valuable Player award during a season in which he amassed 776 runs at an incredible strike rate of 237.31.
Sooryavanshi is not finished, though. The Rajasthan Royals sensation has already set his sights on what he views as the greatest challenge of his career following an IPL season that broke all previous records.
IPL 2026's breakout star was Sooryavanshi. The left-hander demonstrated maturity under pressure and easily destroyed some of the top bowlers in the world. Discussions over an India call-up and whether he has the skills to succeed in all forms were spurred by his performances.
Sooryavanshi is already looking beyond T20 cricket, even as the excitement surrounding an India debut keeps growing.
After Royal Challengers Bengaluru defeated Gujarat Titans in the final, former India spinner R Ashwin joked that Sooryavanshi had missed out on one batting award: the award for hitting the most fours in the season. He also asked if Sooryavanshi had any plans to keep the ball on the ground.
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In response, Sooryavanshi stated that fans would soon witness a different side of his batting during the forthcoming India A assignments before disclosing that he has also been working hard with the red ball. Sooryavanshi hinted at great things that are coming, but he did not reveal the specifics of his practice.
"Yes, I will have to play on the ground because the next assignment is in a one-day format," he replied. "I have practised a lot with a red ball, but no one has seen me do that, but they will soon."
"People think I love to hit every ball, but this is the T20 format, and coaches give me a free hand to go all guns blazing," Sooryavanshi explained when Harbhajan Singh questioned him further about his aspirations to play Test cricket. And I don't hit the ball out of force; I just do it because I know I can hit them.
"Obviously, I want to play Test cricket because I have played it and my father taught me that it is the best format. However, I haven't played many games yet. I played Ranji Trophy cricket, but it was difficult for me and I did not have many opportunities. However, I'm going to continue honing that part of my game," he declared.
His remarks were made the day after Sachin Tendulkar, in front of BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar, supported him for Test cricket during an award ceremony in Mumbai.
Tendulkar stated, "I would tell him to just be himself." "A first time is inevitable. As he gets older, Test cricket will teach him how to handle a variety of obstacles. It's about thinking in terms of solutions. There will inevitably be issues. With each ball, the bowler poses a question. What answers do you find now?
"The way he sees the ball and the way he responds to that, if that signal is interrupted — if you put a lot of hurdles in between that by telling him multiple things — that's where the real challenge would be. I would give him the freedom to go out and bat the way he does. Along with time, he will learn to deal with other challenges of the game."
Since making his Bihar debut in January 2024, Sooryavanshi has only participated in eight first-class games. He has scored one half-century and 207 runs in 12 innings. At the junior level, he has demonstrated promise as well. Last year, he scored a century off 58 balls for India U-19 against Australia.
