Vaibhav Sooryavanshi finished the IPL 2026 season as the leading run-scorer.
Rajasthan Royals (RR) teenage prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi took the cricketing world with his dazzling exploits in the IPL 2026 season, finishing as the leading run-scorer with 776 runs at a staggering strike rate of 237.30, including one hundred and five half-centuries.
Along the way, Sooryavanshi shattered major milestones. At just 15 years and 65 days, he set a new IPL record as the youngest Orange Cap winner.
The southpaw became the fastest player in history to score 1000 IPL runs in terms of balls faced (440 balls) and the first to smash 500 powerplay runs in a single edition. He also broke Chris Gayle's long-standing record for most sixes in an IPL season (59 sixes set in 2012) by hammering 72 sixes across 16 matches.
No wonder, Sooryavanshi swept five major honors at the post-tournament awards ceremony, being named the Most Valuable Player, Emerging Player of the Season, Super Striker of the Season, Orange Cap winner, and Super Sixes of the Season.
Following his unprecedented dominance in the IPL, calls for Vaibhav’s inclusion in the Indian T20I team for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England have grown louder.
Former India cricketer-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar has also backed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for the national T20I debut.
“Vaibhav would be the next in line after the incumbents, Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma. But I'd like to see Vaibhav play in similar batting conditions to those in the IPL, if they pick him for India at all. Won't be a great idea to put him straight into, you know, foreign, kind of, on a foreign pitch, like New Zealand, South Africa, we'll see,” Manjrekar said on Sportstar's ‘Insight Edge’ Podcast.
“He might go out there and repeat what he's done in the IPL. But, yeah, it's a tough one when you look at the contenders. Whether Gill is in front or Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, it's a tough call. So, let it happen organically and see how it goes,” he added.
Manjrekar compared judging Sooryavanshi's early success to a fast bowler succeeding on a helpful, grassy pitch. While it’s exciting, he believes true greatness requires proving you can adapt and perform under tougher, less favorable conditions.
“When I go and meet people on the cricket ground, the first question they ask is, 'How good is he? Obviously, he's taken the T20 or the IPL by storm. And now, because we have the same people like Dhoni and some of the others, a lot of people think that he's carried the IPL in the last, second half by his performances,” Manjrekar stated.
“For me, my problem with predicting the future of a certain player is that you see the potential. It's like when you have a fast bowler on a green top. Ideally, bowling conditions come and take a five-wicket home. And then the hard man to please will always say, it remains to be seen how he bowls on a flat page or with the old ball. So, what we have to really take and what I will take from his performances is phenomenal for somebody who's fairly young, and he's got some hitting talent. He's got some great ballset. He also has the range,” he remarked.
Manjrekar advised against rushing Sooryavanshi into Tests without refining his technique. He stressed that the youngster must fight for his place in the Bihar Ranji Trophy squad.
“A lot of people are saying how we should handle him? And how will he fare in red-ball cricket? I don't think it's our job to handle. It isn't even the BCCI's job. He is an individual. And I'm sure there are people around him who would like him to play with his coaches. It's about what he sets out to do in life. If he wants to just be a T20 sensation and focus on T20 cricket, so be it. And that shouldn't be held against him. But then you'll be judged only as a T20 phenomenal player. He plays 50-over cricket. And I think there's great value in certain conditions for him to bat in the first 10 overs and do what Rohit Sharma did in the 2023 World Cup. Even better than Rohit,” said Manjrekar.
“It really should be about him deciding what he wants to be in life. Because if he wants to play red ball cricket, it's a little unfair that he gets picked on for these performances when there could be certain deserving players who have done the hard yards in that Bihar Ranji Trophy team. Let's not complicate things for him. Let him decide. If he wants to aspire to play in the Ranji Trophy cricket, he's got to fight for his place in that side. And let the state selectors decide whether he's going to be adding value or whether he's going to be a good enough player. But it's really about what he wants to do,” he concluded.