Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has warned against comparing teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to the great Sachin Tendulkar, emphasizing that the young player will face different difficulties.  

Sooryavanshi, a left-handed opener for the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, has amassed 579 runs at an incredible strike rate of 236.32 in 13 games, with an incredible 53 sixes to his name.

"What Vaibhav is doing is very special, but what I don't want the people to do is tag him as the next Sachin because he is just 15 years old and doing what he is doing. I think what Sachin did was extraordinary. Vaibhav's challenges will be completely different.

Sachin's challenges would have been as much on the field as they were off the field, but Vaibhav's challenges will definitely be more off-field, because he possesses a lot of cricketing skills, dealing with everything that comes outside the sport," said Karthik in an upcoming episode of the Quest Talk podcast by iQOO.

Karthik, who is RCB’s batting coach and mentor, highlighted how the IPL has evolved from its first season in 2008.

"IPL, from its start to what it is today, is a completely different beast, and it's like the sport has grown on steroids because a lot of things have changed. The amount of data and matrix used has been quite phenomenal; it's the fastest-growing format that ever existed, and it's a lifestyle provider for a lot of people. And it seems like a very strong career option for any young boy or girl choosing to play the sport. And it's competing with other sports tournaments in the world in a very short period of time," he added.

Karthik’s RCB is currently no. 1 on the IPL 2026 points table and has qualified for the playoffs after acquiring 18 points from 13 games and 9 wins.

(IANS inputs)