Former West Indies all-rounder Carlos Braithwaite has said Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s India debut should not be rushed, even as the youngster’s strong IPL 2026 season has led to growing calls for him to be promoted to the senior side. Sooryavanshi underlined his form again and 36-ball hundred against SRH on Saturday, April 26.
RR vs SRH, IPL 2026: Highlighting | Scorecard
Braithwaite said India would be better served by taking a cautious approach to the batter and pointed to the way West Indies managed Brian Lara in his early years. He said Lara, who is widely regarded as a generational talent, spent time with senior players ahead of his international debut and hinted that Sooryavanshi could benefit from a similar journey.
“I’m sorry Vaibhave, but if you look at the way West Indies handled Brian Lara… he was a generational talent, everybody knew that,” Braithwaite said on ESPNcricinfo’s TimeOut.
“So what did the West Indies do? They put him in the mix with Viv Richards and what not, but he didn’t play (international cricket). It was a different time with a lot of tour matches and he was messing around with senior players without making his debut. And then we know how his career went when he made his debut.”
Braithwaite said Sooryavanshi should remain close to the senior Indian side and be allowed to learn from players such as Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav, as well as younger players closer to his age, before being pushed into international cricket.
“So maybe there is the best of both worlds – where you can have him with the Indian team – learning from Virat (Kohli), learning from Rohit (Sharma), learning from Suryakumar Yadav. There are younger players who are close to him in age that he can learn from before just throwing him in at the deep end,” he said.
YET IPL 2026 SOORYAVANSHI
Sooryavanshi is among the leading run-scorers in IPL 2026 and is competing with Abhishek Sharma, KL Rahul and Kohli for the Orange Cap. In eight matches, he scored 357 runs at a strike rate of 234.87 and an average of 44.63. He has also dismantled bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah and Josh Hazlewood and has been central to RR’s wins this season.
RR next face unbeaten PBKS in Mullanpur on Tuesday, April 28, with Sooryavanshi’s form the focus as the debate over his India debut continues.
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Published on:
26 Apr 2026 10:03 IST
