‘He’s a 15-year-old’: BCCI to bear parents’ expenses as Vaibhav Sooryavanshi begins India tour

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (Photo by @BCCI on X) NEW DELHI: The BCCI has decided to allow the parents of teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to accompany him on the upcoming tours of Ireland and England, with the board bearing all expenses in a bid to help the 15-year-old adjust to life in the senior Indian team.BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said the move is to ensure the youngster continues to feel comfortable as he transitions from age-group cricket to the demands of international cricket. “As he is a child, we have decided to allow his parents to accompany him to Ireland and England to be with him and help him settle into his new environment. The board will cover all their expenses,” Saikia told Sportstar.The teenage batting prodigy earned his first Indian invitation for the T20I series in Ireland and England and the Asian Games after a record-breaking IPL 2026 campaign in which he amassed 776 runs for Rajasthan Royals.

BCCI wants to ease the transition of teenagers

Saikia revealed that Sooryavanshi’s father, Sanjeev, has already traveled to Sri Lanka to join his son, who is currently with the India A side for the tri-series in Dambulla.“Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s father is coming to Sri Lanka today and we will offer him that if he wants to go to UK and Ireland as well, we will do that. Vaibhav was selected in the India A team a few days ago and will soon be part of the Indian senior men’s team.”“To make him comfortable in the new environment, especially with him being a child, we have arranged for his father to go to Sri Lanka and be with his son to get used to the new situation,” Saikia told IANS.The BCCI secretary emphasized that the board’s main responsibility is to ensure that the youngster does not feel isolated in an unfamiliar environment.“He was also selected yesterday for the T20I tour of UK and Ireland. So we will make an offer that if the parents or the father want to go there, we will arrange that too. It is basically about making the kid feel comfortable in the senior men’s team and that is the basic thing,” he said.“It’s because otherwise he always traveled with his under-19 team, junior boys or junior boys. It meant he was in a comfort zone. But now he’s going to be in the adult world and we want to make him comfortable because he’s a 15-year-old boy. Certainly with his parents around, he’ll feel more comfortable. Depending on his satisfaction and comfort, we do that,” he added.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (Image credit: BCCI/IPL)

A responsibility beyond cricket

Saikia said the management has a duty to ensure that the young players are not overwhelmed by the challenges of the new environment.“You see, we have a certain responsibility – that nobody feels uncomfortable or alien in the new environment. That is our basic principle, that he gradually adapts to being in the senior team,” he said.Sooryavanshi’s rapid rise was nothing short of extraordinary. After starring in India’s Under-19 World Cup triumph, he dominated IPL 2026, finishing as the tournament’s top run-scorer with 776 runs, including a century and five fifties.He also won several individual honours, winning the Orange Cap, Rookie of the Year Award, Most Valuable Player Award, Best Run and the record for most sixes in a single IPL season.Chief selector Ajit Agarkar said the youngster had indeed “picked” with his performances.“We have high hopes for him and I think he’s really picked himself,” Agarkar said.