‘We have our plans’: New Zealand plan to stop Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ahead of India T20I

New Zealand have done their homework on India’s teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and are making concrete plans to counter his explosive knocks, with pacer Jacob Duffy hoping home conditions will present a new challenge for the 15-year-old ahead of the five-match T20I series starting on Thursday.Sooryavanshi took the cricketing world by storm with his fearless approach and remarkable consistency, rewriting records in the Indian Premier League before becoming India’s youngest international cricketer in the men’s game with his T20I debut in England in July.After a quiet start to his international career against England, the left-handed opener made his mark on the global stage by smashing an 18-ball half-century against Zimbabwe to become the youngest player to score a fifty in men’s international cricket. He continued his rise, recently winning a gold medal at the Asian Games in Japan.With India now gearing up for a tough tour of New Zealand, the hosts are well aware of the threat posed by the young opener. The opening T20I will be played at Christchurch’s Hagley Oval, where seam-friendly conditions could test Sooryavanshi’s ability to adapt.

‘He’s an incredible talent’: Duffy reveals New Zealand plans

Acknowledging Sooryavanshi’s extraordinary ability to hit the ball hard while maintaining an impressive scoring rate, Duffy said the New Zealand camp had carefully studied his performances ahead of the series.“First of all, he’s an incredible talent. He’s obviously taken the IPL by storm and what’s amazing is he’s attacking it so hard, but he’s doing it so consistently,” Duffy told reporters on Tuesday. “He strikes out at a 250 (strikeout) rate every game and doesn’t miss very often. So that’s incredible in itself.”“I think he’s played in England so the conditions are going to be a bit different for him, so that’s obviously one thing he has to be challenged with. We’ve certainly had a good session with him and we’ve got plans for what we want to do with him,” he said.The comments underline New Zealand’s intention to make Sooryavanshi work for his runs rather than allowing him to settle into the rhythm that has made him one of the most talked-about young batsmen in world cricket.India fans will be keen to see how the teenager copes with the New Zealand conditions where the pitches can offer movement and bounce to the fast bowlers. The five-match T20I series will provide an important test of his adaptability against an attack familiar with exploitative conditions at home.

‘As long as it’s not Hyderabad’: Duffy hopes for bounce back

Duffy has already recognized the main pitch of Hagley Oval by the surface and hopes the pitch will offer enough help to the bowlers to prevent a high-scoring match.“He’s from Invercargill so he promised me a little bounce,” said Duffy, who was born in Lumsden, a small town near the South Island city. “As long as it’s not Hyderabad, I’m happy.The T20I series is the first leg of India’s tour, which will also include one-day internationals and two-day Test series.Duffy arrives at the task after a productive period in his career. The Otago bowler won the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal as New Zealand’s best player in 2025 and was part of Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s victorious IPL campaign after reaching the T20 World Cup final earlier in the year.