Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has hammered 404 runs in 10 innings at a strike rate of 237.65.
Sooryavanshi has been amazing with the bat in the ongoing IPL 2026, where he has scored 404 runs in 10 innings at a strike rate of 237.65, including a century and two fifties. He has hammered the best of bowlers like Josh Hazlewood, Jasprit Bumrah, and Pat Cummins for sixes in a nonchalant manner.
In an interview with AB de Villiers on his YouTube channel before IPL 2026, Jitesh—who captained Sooryavanshi in the India A Asia Cup last year—made the statement after the South African legend complimented the Rajasthan Royals opener.
“He’s not professional. I can tell you that. Everyone is trying to get him to be professional, but I don’t think he will ever get professional. He may be on the field, but off the field, he won’t. I’m trying my best. I ask him not to have ice cream at night,” Jitesh had said on AB de Villiers YouTube channel.
There was a huge uproar over Jitesh’s comment that Sooryavanshi was 'unprofessional,' and the keeper-batter was targeted when Vaibhav smashed 78 off 26 against RCB earlier this season in Guwahati.
Jitesh was asked about the comment and why he decided to clarify it on the RCB podcast. He maintained his stance, adding that Vaibhav is "unprofessional" only in the sense that he is still a child who appreciates simple pleasures such as ice cream.
He also stated that, while there is a lot of professionalism surrounding him, he wants him to be loyal to himself.
“Because he is. See, he is a very close friend of mine, so I can call him anything. AB de Villiers asked me which youngster could become the next big star in Indian cricket, and I quickly named Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. When he asked why, I said it’s because he has the technique and I’ve seen his hard work. I told him, ‘Vaibhav can dominate all three formats.’ Now, when he said he looks professional, I said ‘no.’ He is not a professional.
He is a 15-year-old kid. He loves ice cream. He comes to my home and speaks to my wife, and we watch TV and YouTube videos. He is like my younger brother. See, I don’t know what people say, but there is a lot of professionalism around him. But he is just a kid. So, when he comes over, he becomes that kid again,” Jitesh told Mr. Nags on the RCB podcast.
Rajasthan will play its next match against the Gujarat Titans on May 9. On the other hand, RCB will face Lucknow in Bengaluru on May 7.