Vaibhav Sooryavanshi remains under the scanner for everything he does. For every success. And nearly for every failure, especially now after graduating to India A after thumping IPL 2025 and 2026. And even for his behaviour. Every act is monitored, tracked and judged. One such was when he was at loggerheads with Sri Lankan A players during a group-stage outing in the Tri-Nation Series Final.ย
And then again in the final against the same opponents with whom he had an altercation. This time, about how he will respond. About how he can handle the pressure of being under continuous scrutiny, and that too on a big stage like a final. But he passed with flying colours. A 29-ball 94, which at one time threatened to break the fastest record for a List A century, took away the game from Sri Lanka. An 11-ball fifty had already shattered the quickest half-century record.ย
This wasn’t just the first such big knock in a big game. But an add-on to a fabled list. He produced two jaw-dropping knocks in the IPL playoffs. One against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2026 Eliminator. A 29-ball 97 took the game away from the 2016 champions. Then he put up another masterclass against the Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2, although his teammates hadn’t done enough on the day, as GT won that game.ย
Sooryavanshi’s first big knock at a big stage came in the U19 World Cup final earlier this year. The teenage prodigy had ramped up 175 off 80 balls in a 50-over final against England. It killed the game. Had almost handed the trophy to India even before the second innings started.
That knock came after a disappointing show in the U19 Asia Cup 2025 final against Pakistan. India were blown away that day after a Sameer Minhas 172 earlier in the first innings had set the young Indians with a mountain to climb of 348. The Indian players were called out for being too attacking, and Sooryavanshi wasn’t spared.
He was dismissed for 26 from 10 balls attempting a rash shot against Ali Raza. The players hardly had any choice other than to go all cylinders when the target was so daunting.ย
But Sooryavanshi has come a long way since then. He has shown aggression and wisdom in the next big matches. He has shown that he has got the big-game pedigree with his shoulders being so young. At just 15, Sooryavanshi showed once again that he can be the next big thing in the sport. And he will remain under scrutiny till then.
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