Gautam Gambhir Urged To Go Slow With Vaibhav Sooryavanshi In Ireland, England Tours: 'Don't Force Him Into Playing XI'
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has earned his maiden India call-up for the upcoming T20I series against Ireland and England, with the 15-year-old also named in the squad for the 2026 Asian Games.
- Cricket
- 2 min read
1983 World Cup winner and former India cricketer Kris Srikkanth shared his thoughts on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s maiden India call-up for the upcoming T20I series against Ireland and England, as well as the 2026 Asian Games.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Gets Rewarded For Stunning IPL 2026 Performance
On Saturday, June 6, the BCCI announced India’s squads for the Ireland and England tours, along with the team for the Asian Games.
Sooryavanshi was rewarded for his outstanding performance in the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The teenager finished as the tournament’s highest run-scorer, amassing 776 runs at a strike rate of 237.31 and an average of 48.50, including 72 sixes and 63 fours.
Kris Srikkanth Sheds Light On Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's Maiden India Call-Up
Speaking on his official YouTube channel, Srikkanth advised Gautam Gambhir and the Indian team management to go easy with the 15-year-old and not rush him into the playing XI.
He stressed that it doesn’t matter if Sooryavanshi makes the starting eleven immediately, and cautioned against playing him “just for the sake of it.”
“He has forced his way into the team. Age is no factor in his selection, it’s purely based on his scores. It doesn’t matter if he plays in the XI or not. The management should guarantee him a slot in the 16 for three years, irrespective of whether he plays or fails. Don’t force him into the XI against Ireland just for the sake of it,” Srikkanth said.
In the U19 World Cup 2026, Sooryavanshi was the second-highest run-scorer, tallying 439 runs from seven matches at a strike rate of 169.49 and an average of 62.71. He registered one century and three half-centuries in the ICC event.
India's Squad for England and Ireland Tour: Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Isha Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma (VC), Nitish Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
India's Squad for Asian Games 2026: Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma (VC), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
Published By : Aniket Datta
Published On: 8 June 2026 at 09:56 IST