Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill, SRH’s interim captain Ishan Kishan, and RCB skipper Rajat Patidar were asked during a Q&A session about one player from other teams that they’d like to play for their team.
And all of them had only one answer, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
The 15-year-old, who was the youngest to debut in IPL in 2025, had made an immediate mark with a six off the first ball he faced on debut for Rajasthan Royals. Sooryavanshi then hammered a 35-ball century the same season, the fastest by an Indian, and became the youngest in IPL and in T20s to score a century.
He scored 252 runs in 7 games, with a strike rate of 206.55 in IPL 2025, with one century and one fifty, hitting 18 fours and 24 sixes.
Sooryavanshi has continued this destruction in IPL 2026 as well, having scored 200 runs in 4 games with 2 fifties and a strike rate of 266.66.
The fact that Ishan Kishan, Rajat Patidar, and Shubman Gill all selected Sooryavanshi as the young player they would want in their teams during an entertaining rapid-fire round is a good indicator of Sooryavanshi's effect in the IPL.
However, former India captain Anil Kumble has urged caution as Sooryavanshi’s record-breaking antics in IPL have led to a mass call for his inclusion in the Indian team.
While extraordinary potential can make it challenging to hold a youngster back, Kumble pointed out that early expectations can also put undue strain on a youngster.
"The player himself probably answers that question," Kumble said, referring to the debate around fast-tracking versus gradual progression.
He was compared to the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, whose steady achievements in the late 1980s created an indisputable case for selection as a youngster.
Sooryavanshi has shown encouraging indicators, according to Kumble, who also noted that the 15-year-old is "doing all the right things."
"At this point, it's a bit of pressure on a young lad to say, 'I want you to play for India in two months' time,'" he said.
Highlighting the advantage of youth, the former India captain pointed out that time is firmly on Sooryavanshi's side.
"Even 10 years later, he's going to be 25," he remarked.
