Vaibhav Sooryavanshi enjoyed a ground-breaking IPL 2026, in which the 15-year-old amassed 776 runs in 16 innings at a blistering strike rate of 237.30. He finished as the leading run-scorer of the season and also won the award for Most Valuable Player. To add to that, the Bihar-born finished the season with 72 maximums to his name, which is the most by a player in any single edition.
Following which, plenty of discussions had taken place on whether to add him to the senior squad. While many believed that Sooryavanshi should play for India A first and then gradually move to the senior team, the selectors have handed the youngster his maiden call-up for the upcoming Ireland and England series.ย
The idea is to fast-track his development and allow the youngster to settle well before the T20 World Cup 2028 and the Olympics. In the meantime, speaking about his selection, former England cricketer Graeme Swann believes that it was only time as the southpaw has all the talent in the world and has proved his mettle at the U19 level, scoring a century in the World Cup final against Afghanistan.
“I’m glad he has been picked, for the sake of world cricket. He’s the box-office man of the moment. I think he should play against Ireland. I wasn’t entirely sure how good he was coming into this IPL. I knew he had talent, and he scored a big hundred in the U19 World Cup Final. But I thought world-class bowlers would find him out. There would be too much pace and too much planning against him,โ Swann said in JioStarโs Cricket Live.ย
Swann highlights Sooryavanshiโs impact in the IPL
Leading up to the season, there were doubts about whether Sooryavanshi could play the same brand of cricket against quality bowlers such as Jasprit Bumrah and Pat Cummins. The doubt slowly diminished as the youngster proved tough to contain. Swann highlighted that and noted his 97-run knock against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Eliminator and then 96 against Gujarat Titans in the Qualifier 2.
โHowever, every question that was asked of him, he answered with aplomb. The 97 he scored in the Eliminator, I’ve rarely seen hitting like that. As he was smashing Pat Cummins all over the ground, I was thinking, ‘This kid is the real deal.’ I didn’t see the point of not involving him, or not bringing him into the senior team, because you’ve got an absolute world-beater on your hands for the next 20 years,โ Swann said.ย
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