15-year-old boy in waiting: What exactly is India’s plan for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi?

There’s a fine line between protecting a young player and actively stunting his momentum. Hot on the heels of a historic 0-2 series defeat, the Indian team management drew harsh criticism when it left 15-year-old batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi out of the playing eleven for the opening T20I against England in Durham on Wednesday.

To many, keeping the country’s most explosive young hitter on the ice seems like administrative cowardice. Yet as the online discourse turns toxic, a vital counter-narrative has emerged from the realists of the modern game: how do you weed out established players in a meritocracy who have done absolutely everything that was asked of them?

The frustration over Sooryavanshi’s omission is completely understandable. On the eve of the UK tour, the batting coach suggested Sitanshu Kotak that the management does not wish to “disrupt the current hierarchy”, a conservative sentiment echoed by captain Shreyas Iyer. Critics immediately pointed to the Ireland series, historically the ideal canvas for testing bench strength, as a missed opportunity.

Even the legendary Sunil Gavaskar bemoaned the hesitation, remarking before the team arrived in England:

“I have been saying for a month that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi could have played both the matches because of his form… If you were to test a young player, these two matches were the perfect opportunity.

After the game in Durham, Gavaskar warned that the delay debut only adds to the pressure on the teenager, who now knows he may have to deliver almost immediately when he is finally called upon. Speaking to Sony Sports after the opening T20I series in England ended without a result due to rain, Gavaskar said:

“He’ll put him (Sooryavanshi) under more pressure whenever he gets a chance. But at 15, you don’t think too much about pressure. He knows if he gets a chance in the second or third game, he’ll have to deliver almost immediately. That’s there.”

WHO WILL YOU FIRE?

Can India afford to drop one of the top three and include Sooryavanshi? (Getty Images)

Still, take a close look at the top three blocking Sooryavanshi’s path and the leadership’s reluctance becomes quite reasonable. Head coach Gautam Gambhir has become an easy punching bag for impatient fans, but his underlying philosophy is sound: no player thrives in an environment of radical uncertainty.

Consider the staggering pedigree of the men currently holding the fort. Since the start of the last T20 World Cup cycle, Abhishek Sharma has smashed over 1,500 T20 runs with a breathtaking tally of 193 and has deservedly climbed to the top of the ICC T20I batting rankings. Sanju Samson may be enduring a three-match slump, but just before that he came up with a trio of all-time great innings in the knockout stages of the T20 World Cup.

Then there is Ishan Kishan, who climbed to the top spot in the T20I rankings with consistent performances since being brought back into the squad ahead of the T20 World Cup. After being dropped a couple of years ago, Ishan smashed the door through a grueling domestic gauntlet of Syed Mushtaq Ali and Vijay Hazare Trophies to earn a recall.

How does a management group look at any of the three and say, “Thank you for your historic service, but you’re being pushed aside for the next shiny object”?

Ruthlessly discarding a player of this caliber after a few setbacks would completely destroy the confidence of the dressing room and create a toxic environment where players play out of fear of survival rather than freedom of expression. They earned a long rope.

Even Cheteshwar Pujara has come to terms with this protective view even after Sanju Samson failed at Durham on Wednesday. The Chennai Super Kings batter made just six runs over three T20Is on the British tour and quite a few people on social media argued that Samson should make way for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. In an interview with JioHotstar, Pujara said:

“I think India should stick with Sanju Samson. I don’t think he should feel any pressure. He proved himself in the T20 World Cup and with the talent he has, he should be there in the playing eleven. There shouldn’t be much noise about dropping Sanju Samson. He is a quality player and should be longer. Sanju just needs to bat a lot. Naturally and not think too much.

“If Vaibhav needs to play, he should play but not at the cost of dropping someone, rather by keeping someone. If you want to give him a chance, that’s fine. But you shouldn’t drop any of India’s top three players, be it Sanju, Abhishek or Ishan Kishan. Having said that, Vaibhav deserves a chance.”

MERIT OR HIERARCHY?

Sooryavanshi is already the toast of the nationif not the world of cricket, but his arrival should not bring an intimidation factor into the dressing room. A young person needs a supportive environment where he does not feel threatened by hierarchy or actively threaten the existing order – although it remains to be seen whether such a delicate balance can actually survive in the ultra-competitive modern environment.

However, recognizing the validity of stability in the locker room does not completely absolve management. This only brings us to the final, inevitable question: if the pecking order was so adamant, why even pick Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the 15-man squad?

The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee openly admitted that Sooryavanshi’s performances made him impossible to ignore. He wasn’t quickly slotted into the tour’s senior party as a developmental luxury or an apprentice sent to carry drinks and absorb the atmosphere. He was selected on pure, unadulterated merit.

If the last few months are any indication, culminating in a historic IPL campaign where he systematically dismantled the world’s best bowling attacks, Sooryavanshi is not just a bright prospect; on pure form and pace, he is currently the most devastating opening batsman in T20 cricket.

International cricket cannot be run as a fantasy league game where under-performing players are immediately replaced and the preservation of team culture is paramount. But equally, meritocracy cannot function if the undeniable form of world class is forced to sit in the dugout.

If the management really believed that exposing the fifteen-year-old to the intense glare of the international game was premature, they should have let him dominate domestic cricket instead of drafting him just to watch from the bench.

– The end

Issued by:

Akshay Ramesh

Published on:

02 Jul 2026 12:15 PM IST