Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s selection in India’s T20I squads for the Ireland and England series, as well as the 2026 Asian Games in Japan, emerged as one of the big talking points when the names were announced on Saturday.
The 15-year-old, who had a stellar IPL 2026 making 776 runs in 16 matches, already has his eyes on a long career, where he wishes to dominate for “10-20 years” and play in a manner that stays in people’s minds.
“I have thought that for the next 20 years, as long as God gives me the chance to play for my country, for a franchise and for a team, I want to play in a way that people remember. Whenever people think of matches, they should say that whenever this player played, he could finish the match on his own.”
“That dominance should be seen because I am working hard for that. Not just playing and finishing games. I want to dominate for 10-20 years and play good cricket. I started cricket because I enjoy it. So I want to enjoy my life and play well,” Sooryavanshi said in an interview with Rajasthan Royals (RR).
Sooryavanshi’s exploits in white-ball cricket have helped him catapult into the senior setup, but the teenager has not let his red-ball ambitions die down and is willing to adapt to meet the demands of long-form cricket, admitting that he wants to become an all-format player for India.
“A lot of people think about whether I want to play red-ball cricket or not. So I answered that. Sir, I have practised a lot with the red ball. For my state, I have played a lot with the red ball. And I want to play red-ball cricket because I practise red-ball cricket.”
This is why I bat in this format because this is the need in this format. I will change my batting according to the requirements of red-ball cricket. I will change according to the needs of ODIs. My dream is to play in all three formats. God knows what else,” Sooryavanshi added.
RR may not have made the IPL 2026 finals, but on finals day, the left-hander had a chance to meet Virat Kohli after the match. Sooryavanshi revealed that he was an RCB fan earlier, adding that Kohli’s words felt as if they were coming from an elder brother.
“Honestly, when Virat bhai put his hand on my shoulder, it felt like a dream. I was actually a big RCB fan and a huge Virat fan. When he spoke to me, he didn’t feel like Virat Kohli the superstar. He felt like a big brother. He explained what I was doing well, what else I should improve, where I should focus and what I should do in the future,” he said.
A strong Indian top-order could mean that Sooryavanshi may have to wait to play for India. But the left-hander is clear about doing well whenever the opportunity comes his way.
“It is everyone’s dream to represent their country. But my focus is that wherever and whenever I get a chance, I should perform and do my work. Everything else will take care of itself,” he concluded.
