NEW DELHI: A day after Vaibhav Sooryavanshi brazenly dismissed the bizarre ‘AI chip in bat’ theory, another moment involving a teenage sensation hit the internet – this time courtesy of Jose Buttler.Speaking on a podcast with Stuart Broad, Buttler revealed that he jokingly texted Jofro Archer to ask if the 15-year-old prodigy was even real.
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Munaf Patel questions the appointment of Morne Morkel, Sitanshu Kotak“I actually texted Jofro and asked, ‘Is this artificial intelligence? Did Elon Musk create this teenage sensation who’s just a wizard with a bat?'” Buttler said, laughing.Buttler’s remark, while clearly tongue-in-cheek, perfectly captured the disbelief surrounding Sooryavanshi’s outrageous form in IPL 2026 – a season where the youngster has put in extraordinary looks through the routine.Sooryavanshi’s answer ‘God gifted’ wins heartsThe viral moment comes just a day after Sooryavanshi himself addressed the growing chatter surrounding his otherworldly performances. When asked about the ‘AI chip’ theory, the Rajasthan Royals prodigy replied with a smirk: “God implanted it and told me he was putting something in my bat. I just use it.”The witty remark, widely shared on social media, only added to the aura surrounding the teenager who seems to be rewriting the norms with every outing.Buttler in awe of the unthreatened sixHumor aside, Buttler was full of admiration for Sooryavanshi’s audacity – especially his ability to take on the world’s best bowlers from the first ball.He highlighted the staggering stats of Jasprit Bumrah, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins – arguably the three best fast bowlers of this era.“Sooryavanshi, off the first three balls he faced against Hazlewood, Bumrah and Cummins, he put each of them over the ropes for a six. That’s outrageous,” Buttler said.He added that such fearlessness is rare, especially in someone so young.“You can imagine a coach telling a 15-year-old kid to just look at the ball – and decide that each one of them is going to shoot first from the ground. That’s extraordinary.”Records fall as a teenager rewrites historyIf the hype needed numbers to back it up, Sooryavanshi delivered emphatically. The youngster recently became the fastest player in IPL history to reach 400 runs in a season, reaching the milestone in just 167 balls.He surpassed the previous record held by Andre Russell (188 balls in 2019) and left a trail of established stars in his wake.With 400 runs in nine matches in a staggering strike tally north of 230, including 37 sixes, Sooryavanshi is not just a breakout star – he is the defining story of the season.
