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Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the latest sensation in world cricket, has expressed his desire to play in the red ball format as well for India. The 15-year-old’s comments came after his selection for the T20I format ahead of India’s tour in the UK.
Sooryavanshi has done enough to prove his immense talent by smashing the bowlers wherever he played in the recent past. Whether it was with the India U-19, Rajasthan Royals, or with the state team, the outcome was the same: pure carnage.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi wants to play in Tests
So far, the batter from Bihar is mostly recognized as a Twenty20 format batter. But he does not want to limit himself to only one format. On Sunday, the Rajasthan Royals shared a video from their official social media account with their teenage opener.
During the conversation, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi expressed that he had heard a lot of discussions about red-ball cricket, so his goal is to play red-ball cricket as well.
AB de Villiers has doubts about the teenage batter's goal
Former South Africa cricketer AB de Villiers has some doubts over Sooryavanshi’s goal to play Tests. Villers does not doubt that the southpaw is highly talented, but Sooryavanshi himself really wants to? The former batter raises the question.
"He's a wonderful talent. The red-ball thing I absolutely cannot answer. I think he can if he wants to, but there's your answer, and there's the big question as well: Does he really want to? Time will tell. There's no doubt he's got the talent and ability to do so. It won't always be easy, and I've mentioned that a few times before," De Villiers said during an interview with NDTV in Mumbai on Sunday.
Villiers further mentions that in Test cricket, there will be some challenges for the young batter who loves to smash the bowlers all around the park. So he directly says that he has doubts about the skillful batter.
"If he decides to play red-ball cricket, there will be some challenges, but he's got the skill and the ability to work through that. In my opinion, I hope he does try to play, but I doubt it. We'll see," De Villiers added.
On Saturday, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was officially named in the squad for India’s upcoming T20I series against Ireland and England. India will face Ireland for a 2-match T20I and then England for a 5-match T20I series. Will Sooryavanshi make his debut during the UK tour? That’s been a question since the Ajit Agarkar-led team picked him in the main squad.
Sooryavanshi claimed the Orange Cap in IPL 2026
The selection came after the IPL 2026 season, where Vaibhav Sooryavanshi claimed the Orange Cap as the highest run-scorer in the format and several other individual awards. Sooryavanshi finished the IPL 2026 season with 776 runs to his name at a strike rate of 237.
During the campaign, he dominated some of the top bowlers across the globe, like Jasprit Bumrah, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazelwood, and many others.
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