Sooryavanshi is on the verge of shattering Sachin Tendulkar’s record to become the youngest debutant for India.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was excluded from India’s playing XI for the first T20I against Ireland in Belfast on Friday (June 26). The Indian team management opted to stick with top-order batters who had delivered strong performances during the triumphant T20 World Cup 2026 campaign rather than rushing the teenage batting prodigy into the lineup.
At 15 years and over 90 days old, Sooryavanshi is on the verge of shattering Sachin Tendulkar’s 36-year-old record to become the youngest debutant in men’s cricket for India. Tendulkar was 16 years and 205 days when he made his international debut against Pakistan in 1989.
India’s decision to leave out the teenage sensation in the series opener against Ireland drew mixed response. While some experts praised the think tank for not disrupting their settled top-order to accommodate Sooryavanshi, others were left disappointed by the omission call.
Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar praised the Indian team management for prioritising stability, form, and merit over outside noise.
“Good call by India to not mess with their in-form openers, their T20 WC winning heroes. ‘Outside noise’ must remain just that…noise outside. While calmness & meritocracy presides in the dressing room,” Manjrekar wrote on X.
On the other hand, ex-England captain Michael Vaughan found it baffling that Team India left the best T20 player in the world on the bench.
“Can’t believe India haven’t picked Vaibhav Sooryavanshi .. the best T20 player at the moment in the World,” Vaughan tweeted.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi earned his maiden India call-up on the back of a record-breaking IPL 2026 campaign where he finished as the Most Valuable Player and Orange Cap winner for the Rajasthan Royals (RR), hammering 776 runs at a staggering strike rate of 237.30. Along the way, he dominated high-profile bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood.
Speaking at the toss, India’s newly-appointed T20I skipper Shreyas Iyer explained the decision to snub Sooryavanshi.
“(Vaibhav playing?) Unfortunately, no. He’s a gun player. But obviously, we’ve got tremendous experience in the squad who have done brilliant in the past couple of series for India. So we are backing majority of our cricketers who have been doing absolutely marvellous throughout the season. He will get his opportunity when the time comes. But for now, we are going with three genuine seamers, one all-rounder, and two spinners,” Shreyas said.