From England disappointment to Zimbabwean success: India coach hails Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s ‘maturity level’

India’s interim coach VVS Laxman said 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has shown remarkable growth in his understanding of the game over the past six months, adding that the teenager’s maturity has helped him handle the pressure at international level.Sooryavanshi ended India’s tour of Zimbabwe on a high by winning the Player of the Match and Player of the Series awards after India completed a 3-0 sweep with 35 runs in the third and final T20I on Sunday.“What’s really impressive is the way he’s developed as a person. The level of maturity, understanding and awareness has really skyrocketed in the last six months. And that’s why he’s been able to handle tough situations,” Laxman said during the post-match press conference.The left-hander scored 151 runs in three innings at an average of 50.33, including 81 in the final match which laid the platform for India’s victory.His performances came after a tough debut series against England where he managed scores of 13, 14 and 15 before being dropped for the fifth and final T20I as India lost the series 0-4.“He played the Under-19 World Cup and dominated the IPL within four to five months. We know how tough the competition in the IPL can be.“He has come up against the best bowlers not just from India but from all over the world, how he has developed, how he has progressed as an international cricketer and shown what kind of potential, class and talent he has,” said Laxman, who is serving as interim head coach while Gautam Gambhir is on break ahead of India’s two-Test tour of Sri Lanka next month.Laxman also highlighted Sooryavanshi’s desire to improve and recalled how the youngster wanted to stay on the field despite the injury during the T20I final.“We also have to remember that he’s only 15 years old. He’s a very young boy. And he wants to improve himself in all aspects of the game. And if you can see that, even in today’s game, he got on the hot seat.”“Even when he got injured, he still wanted to be on the field. But it was our physio who actually asked him to come out. So that’s the zeal and seriousness that he has to do and contribute in every possible way to the team,” Laxman said.Asked if he expected Sooryavanshi to bounce back so strongly after his difficult start in England, Laxman said he was not surprised as the youngster has already shown he can handle the pressure during the IPL.“It (performance) was as expected. Again, last year when he played for Rajasthan Royals for the first time, I think the way he handled the pressure because I believe any IPL match is equivalent to an international match.“And at the age of 14 or 15, when you play an IPL match, you can either be overwhelmed by a big event or you can absorb and take the pressure. And I think he took the second option where he took the pressure. So I’m not surprised at all how this series is going,” Laxman said.