Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza has called on India to look after Vaibhav Sooryavanshi carefully, describing him as a rare talent who should not be judged on a handful of matches.
A tough start in England
Vaibhav recently became India’s youngest international debutant, breaking a record Sachin Tendulkar had held for 34 years. Opening in place of Sanju Samson, he scored 14, 13 and 15 in his first T20I series, against England, whose short-pitched bowling tested him at the top level.
His path to the national side has nonetheless been remarkable. In IPL 2026 he made 776 runs in 16 innings at a strike rate of 237.30, winning the Orange Cap, the MVP award and the Emerging Player honour. His 72 sixes broke Chris Gayle’s record for a single IPL season. Earlier in the year he also starred in India’s Under-19 World Cup win, scoring 175 off 80 balls against England in the final, with 15 fours and 15 sixes.
Raza’s view
Speaking on JioHotstar, Raza said it would be wrong to criticise a 15-year-old playing international cricket after two or three games. He pointed out that Vaibhav has good senior players around him and said that, if managed well, he could become a generational talent.
The Zimbabwe skipper added that the responsibility lies with India’s management rather than with the teenager himself. He described what Vaibhav has done over the past year as remarkable and rare in the modern game, and said how India handle him now will matter a great deal.
India next play a three-match T20I series in Zimbabwe, starting on July 23 at Harare Sports Club, giving Vaibhav a chance to rebuild his confidence.
