Vaibhav Sooryavanshi became the second-highest run-scorer of the U19 World Cup 2026.
Legendary South African player AB de Villiers has heaped praise on the Indian prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi following his record-breaking outing in the ICC U19 World Cup 2026. He noted how the opener did not let the high exposure of the Indian Premier League (IPL) affect him and continued to perform at the Under-19 level.
“Absolutely crazy. He is still a youngster, he’s a baby. We saw him perform in the IPL and I thought, hold on, this guy has got some talent. [He] went back to the U-19s. I think for most players or people, who sort of get a taste for the highest level, to step down and find that same kind of passion and drive and intensity at a lower level, is really difficult,” he stated.
The former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter emphasised the 14-year-old’s strength to remain unfazed even after becoming a huge sensation since his smashing debut season in the IPL. Following his heroics for the Rajasthan Royals (RR), the batter continued to deliver in a similar, blistering approach for the IND U-19 in their tours of England and Australia, across formats.
“At his young age, to have the maturity to come a step down, you could easily be arrogant about it. But he was so professional in his performances. I’m not only talking about how many runs he scored. But the way he carried himself, the way he approached each and every single ball he faced, with a lot of aggression, lot of skill, but determination. He does the basics well,” added the former player.
After topping the chart with 355 runs in five Youth ODIs, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi had also put up 90 runs in the subsequent two red-ball fixtures in England. The southpaw had also carried on the momentum to notch up 124 runs in three YODIs, followed by a Youth Test hundred on Australian soil.
“There will be a lot of ups and downs, but we all know the mental side of the game plays a huge role in someone’s career. He will have to face those battles at some stage where there might be a lean patch or two. He’ll start feeling the expectation of having to perform every single game. But I’ve no doubt he’s got what it takes to find a way to work through that,” concluded de Villiers.
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The wonder kid enjoyed yet another stellar campaign in the biggest stage of youth cricket. But prior to that, the batter had also left his mark with 206 runs in three YODI appearances, laced with a ton, while leading the side against South Africa just two weeks before participating in the 50-over World Cup.
Coming into the mega ICC event, Sooryavanshi also amassed 439 runs in seven matches to become the second-highest run-scorer of the tournament. His explosive innings at the top played a crucial role in India claiming their record sixth title in the league’s history. The exceptional display also included a brisk 33-ball 68 in the semi-final, followed by a magnificent 175-run knock in the final off just 80 balls.
Moreover, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi became the first-ever batter to hit 100 maximums in Youth one-day internationals. As another former player Ravichandran Ashwin predicted, it would not be much of a surprise for the fans if he enters the senior T20I team after the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.
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