"I don't know:" EX-India captain drops blunt remark on teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi amid IPL 2026

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the youngster who has taken cricket by storm in recent times, has been backed by every former star; however, the ex-Indian skipper has a stringent opinion when asked to reflect on the young RR batter.

The Rajasthan Royals have dominated this edition of the IPL with the bat, and surprisingly, the one laying the foundation is the youngest cricketer of this edition of the competition. Ever since his debut in the IPL at the age of just 14, he has been beating many marquee players in the race to dominate opposition.

The youngster, just at the age of 15, has already played 28 T20 matches and has amassed 1100+ runs in the shortest format of the game with a whopping strike rate of 215.39. He might not be the batter of the finest quality, but his ball-striking ability has earned him the spotlight this early in his career.

Ex-India captain turns down question related to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

While every big player has provided their view on the Indian youngster dominating T20 cricket and how he should be backed into the senior men's side while also drawing comparisons to the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, former Indian skipper Kapil Dev has refrained from making any such big statements.

On being asked about his opinion on the RR youngster, the 1983 World Cup-winning captain said that he is not in the right position to make such comments; some better people are more informed about the game, for which he also named the likes of his former teammates.

“I don't know because I haven't seen that. I am like you people. Whatever you put on TV, I see, and I try to make sense out of that. I watch cricket at home on TV, and then giving judgment is not correct,” he said.

“People who talk and see everybody, they are better. Like Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri, or Harsha Bhogle, they can make more sense than I can,” the 1983 World Cup winner added.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has left behind the likes of Virat Kohli in the list of run-scorers in IPL 2026

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has been taking world cricket by storm after he first came into the limelight following his century against the Gujarat Titans in IPL 2025. Having scored an IPL century at the age of 14, he was already a sensation in the making.

With a record score of 175 runs in the U19 World Cup final, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi marched into the IPL with some promising knocks at the back of his mind. He scored one of the fastest half-centuries for the Rajasthan Royals in their history of the IPL in the very first match against the Chennai Super Kings.

Having played 10 matches this season, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has struck out over 235 times and has amassed 404 runs, going past the likes of Virat Kohli, Sanju Samson, and Ishan Kishan in the race for the Orange Cap.

Rajasthan Royals eye second title in IPL 2026; Can Sooryavanshi be the youngest IPL winner at 15?

Under their new captain, Riyan Parag's leadership, the Royals have learned to bounce back and went on to win four matches at the start of the season despite the inexperience in their lineup, with Ravindra Jadeja being the only veteran.

However, as of their recent hold on the top 4 spot, the Rajasthan Royals are likely to confirm their spot in the playoffs and might go on to play their third final in all these years in the IPL. The last time they played a final was in 2022, under Samson's captaincy.

Looking for their second title in the IPL for the last 18 seasons, if they win the title this time, the Bihar batter, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, will be the youngest ever winner in the IPL at the age of just 15.

ALSO READ: Kris Srikkanth blasts Hardik Pandya, labels him ‘plastic captain’ after CSK hammering