Not Sachin Tendulkar, not Virat Kohli: Former Australian cricketer reveals Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was the first cricketer he asked for a selfie

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s rise through the ranks of Indian cricket has been swift and the 15-year-old is now on the verge of another milestone. India is expected to hand him his debut in the first T20I against Ireland on Friday in Belfast, making him India’s youngest international cricketer.If selected, Sooryavanshi will be 15 years and 91 days, less than Sachin Tendulkar when he made his international debut against Pakistan in 1989 at the age of 16 years and 205 days. The youngster’s much-anticipated debut comes after a strong IPL season with Rajasthan Royals, where he finished as the tournament’s top scorer with 776 runs in 16 innings at a strike rate of 237.30.Just days ago, while playing for India A against Sri Lanka A, Sooryavanshi broke the record for the fastest half-century in List A cricket, reaching the landmark in just 11 balls.As anticipation builds around his likely debut, former Australian opener and Lucknow Super Giants coach Justin Langer has joined a growing list of cricketing figures to heap praise on the teenager.“Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is only the second selfie I’ve ever asked for! The second one was with an AFL champion I looked up to when I was a little boy,” Langer told BBC Sport.“I said ‘I’ve never done this in the IPL but would you mind if we take a selfie together? Because I’m in awe of your talent, I’m in awe of your mindset, I’m in awe of the way you play cricket’. Watching him bat is amazing.”“What makes him so special? He has special hands. I always say really great players, their hands are like a hose in a swimming pool,” added the former Australian batsman.“She almost does a figure eight in her hands on the backswing. You know, it’s tiny, it’s subtle, but they’re so loose.”

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Share an opinion“A lot of left-handers, when they try to hit sixes, go off the sight screen around to the leg side, which is different from Sooryavanshi, who positions himself to hit it outside the side,” Langer said, adding: “The first ball of his IPL career he hit a six over cover. Not too long, not over 0 deep mid-wicket like a lot of left-handers over 2 and he hit it sixth over 2.”