“It’s ironic when you look at him”: Shreyas Iyer candidly admits to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Shreyas Iyer (ANI Photos) India T20I captain Shreyas Iyer has praised teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ahead of the five-match T20I series against West Indies. Highlighting the youngster’s contrasting personality, Iyer described him as quiet away from cricket but very aggressive when he steps on the field.Sooryavanshi rose to prominence after Rajasthan Royals bought him for Rs 1.1 crore in the IPL 2025 auction. The left-hander has since impressed in the IPL and for India’s Under-19 and A teams. After an ordinary start against England, he bounced back with a Player of the Series win against Zimbabwe.Speaking about the teenager on JioStar, Iyer said, “I still interact with Vaibhav in terms of what he does off the field because everyone talks to him about cricket and we know what a talented and gifted individual he is. So when I talk about his lifestyle outside cricket, that interaction, he knows about his family, what he does and what excites him more, talking about it helps him more.”“And a very quiet guy, but on the pitch, he’s very destructive. So that’s the irony when you look at him. He’s a very charming, nice guy to talk to and it’s good to have him in the dressing room. And I know his time will come because we’ve got World Cup winners right now and they deserve their time out there. He’s definitely still at 15 when his time comes, so.”

Sooryavanshi waits for his opportunity

Sooryavanshi was also part of India’s gold medal-winning Asian Games team, beating Pakistan by 19 runs in the final.Iyer made it clear that the youngster’s standing behind the established openers was no sign that India doubted his talent.With the West Indies series next, Sooryavanshi will look to build on his recent form and make the most of his opportunities as he continues his development in international cricket.