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India’s shock defeat against Ireland in the first of the 2-match T20I series becomes another strong case for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to be named in the playing XI after missing out on the first match in Belfast.
As the top order batters in the likes of Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan flopped in the previous game on Friday, June 26, questions have been raised whether Vaibhav Sooryavanshi should receive his national senior cricket team debut cap for the second and final match of the series against Ireland.
Should Vaibhav Sooryavanshi be allowed to make his Team India debut in the next match against Ireland?
While many have opined in favour of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s debut, former Team India cricketer Dilip Vengsarkar thinks differently. He reckoned that Vaibhav has done extremely well in the T20s in the recent past, but should he deserve to play in the upcoming match against Ireland, or in the upcoming white-ball series against England? Vengsarkar doubts.
The 70-year-old said that before reaching any solid verdict about the young talents, it is necessary to see them in the longer format as well. Vengsarkar believes that the 15-year-old will definitely do well in the Tests, but he will have to prove this on actual grounds.
“He is a talented young man who has done extremely well in T20S, and I am sure he will do well in Test match cricket as well. But we will have to wait and see how he plays in a longer format, which is very important,” the former India captain opined in a video for the news agency PTI.
Dilip Vengsarkar highlights the unique batting style of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
Highlighting some characteristics of modern cricket, Vengsarkar explained that cricket has changed a lot. When they were young, the coaches and trainers asked them only to focus on copybook shots. The former cricketer observes that Vaibhav Sooryvanashi’s batting method is completely different and unique in its own way, which is not similar to traditional ways.
“His batsmanship is completely different. Because when we grew up, we were told just to play in the V and just play on the ground. So nowadays, because of different formats, I think they are coached differently,” he added.
VIDEO | Former India captain and MCA’s cricket advisor Dilip Vengsarkar on where Vaibhav Sooryavanshi fits in the current Indian T20 team after missing out on a debut against Ireland in the first T20I, and whether he should play in the T20I series against England.
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 27, 2026
"He is a… pic.twitter.com/G0lTREBu36
A rare bad in the office for the Indian batters
Last night, Team India suffered a heavy defeat against the home team, Ireland. The Shreyas Iyer-led team bundled out for only 148 runs against the hosts' 182 runs. The Ireland cricket team won the match by 34 runs and took a 1-0 lead in the 2-match series.
As it is a two-match series, the Men in Blue will be desperate to bounce back in the second match, on Sunday, to level the contest ahead of the assignments against the England cricket team, which could be more challenging for the touring team.
It was a tough day for the Indian batters as, apart from Abhishek Sharma’s half-century, there was nothing special produced by the rest of the Indian eleven. The newly appointed captain, Shreyas Iyer, also had a bad outing last night in Belfast.
