‘Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as good as Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar’:Kapil Dev’s big praise; India coach says picking 15-year-old not ‘straightforward’

The cricket world has been buzzing with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. The 15-year-old has taken everyone by surprise with his sheer talent and explosive batting. The recently-concluded IPL 2026 season saw him shatter records and sweep away major batting awards, something which earned him a historic Team India call-up at just 15 years of age. The legendary Kapil Dev praised the young batting superstars and said that he possessed talent equal to that of stalwarts Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli. Amid all the chatter around him, India’s first World Cup-winning captain instead called for the teenager to be given time and played down the hype. ‘Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as good as Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli’ The former cricketer lauded Sooryavanshi’s talent in T20 cricket but also wanted him to do well in other formats. “I haven’t seen him play much. He is a huge talent, without any doubt. But I think we are talking too big about him. At the moment, give him some time. Don’t hype him so much. He is young at the moment and doesn’t have the age to understand everything,” he said while speaking to Sports Tak. If you talk about talent, yes, he is as good as Sachin (Tendulkar) and Virat Kohli. This much talent is visible in him, but only in T20 cricket. In the rest of the formats, he will have to prove himself,” the former all-rounder added. Selecting Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ‘not as straightforward’ There have been growing talk on Sooryavanshi making his international debut. Picked for the Ireland and England T20Is, Sooryavanshi was not given a debut in either of the two losses against Ireland. He was not picked in the first T20I against England as well. Team India bowling coach Morne Morkel reacted to all the talk on Sooryavanshi making his international debut. India take on England in the second T20I of the five-match series on 4 July. The first match was abandoned due to rain, with no action possible in the second innings. Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Morkel addressed Sooryavanshi’s potential selection and also backed both Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson. While Abhishek has had success in his last three T20I appearances, the same cannot be said for Samson, who managed just one run against England in the first T20I. “I don’t think there are a lot of factors. We also need to respect the fact that we’ve got the No. 1 batter in T20 cricket, Abhishek Sharma. Sanju was the player of the World Cup and had a great IPL,” he said. “As a coaching staff, it’s only fair to show faith and back your players. Yes, there’s a young man knocking on the door, and it’s exciting, but I reckon not just for those two players at the top, but for the rest of the group, it’s a good sign that we show we back you guys,” Morkel added. The former pacer further explained, “At the end of the day, it’s about putting performances on the board. We also don’t want to bat players out of position. “It’s not as straightforward as saying, ‘Let’s play him.’ It’s a matter of backing the guys who’ve won World Cups and done really well in tough situations, then building from there and seeing how we can make our top order as strong as possible in these conditions.” ‘Sooryavanshi impressive in training sessions’ Despite not having been given a game so far, Morkel praised the 15-year-old for fitting into the team well and impressing in the net sessions. “He’s fitted in very, very well. If you follow the boys on Instagram, there have already been a lot of photos posted with him. The way the guys have welcomed him has been fantastic. At the international stage as a 15-year-old, it can be intimidating. But in the couple of net sessions we’ve had, he’s been very impressive,” he said. “We’re all excited to see how he goes, and when he gets an opportunity, I’m pretty sure he’ll be ready. In terms of coming into the squad and fitting in, it’s been very smooth,” the India bowling coach said.