Vaibhav Sooryavanshi received rich praise from former India cricketer Kris Srikkanth for showing great maturity with the bat in the recent third T20I between Zimbabwe and India on July 26. The Men in Blue won by 35 runs and completed a 3-0 whitewash.

Sooryavanshi starred with 81, with 8 fours and 4 sixes at a strike rate of 165.31 on a difficult pitch to bat on. He didn't go after the bowling at every delivery, so it wasn't your usual knock. Rather, he played a lengthy innings and took his time.

"165 is a deadly strike rate, but for Sooryavanshi, it felt like it was just 165. You don't often see that from him, but the application was right today. It was not an easy wicket. It was slow; some balls were bouncing, and some kept low. It was beautiful to watch as he showed maturity. He waited and took some time and did not go berserk. He applied himself and also took many ones and twos, which is a very good sign. The fact that he is pushing himself like that is a good sign," Srikkanth said in a video on his YouTube channel.

Sooryavanshi stuck out in the middle and carried the innings, which Srikkanth believed proved to be the key difference in India reaching a total close to 200, while the other batters found it more difficult to get going. Srikkanth also added that the 15-year-old was astute in confronting the bowlers.

"If not for his 81, we would have maybe made 160-170. Others were not able to time the ball that well. That partnership between Vaibhav and Shreyas was also very crucial. They bowled yorkers to him and bowled just short of length, not short enough to pull, and that is where I thought Vaibhav tackled the bowling very well. He played for a long time as an opener, which was an important factor. If he had gotten out early, we could probably have been in trouble,” he added.

Sooryavanshi won the Player of the Match for his knock and also the Player of the Series for 151 runs in the three games, with two fifties.

Impressed with his maturity in T20Is, Srikkanth urged the BCCI selectors to include Sooryavanshi in the ODI squad as well. Srikkanth believed that the left-hander might be included in the team, if not in the starting eleven just yet.

"I want them to groom Vaibhav and get him into the 15 in the one-day side. I will take him for that. Let him be the 15th or 16th. I am not saying ahead of Jaiswal, but you can have both in the 16. You took the likes of Shedge and Dube in England, whom I don't think deserved it. Fast-track him. Tell whatever you want, Man of the Series at the age of 15, what an achievement," he said.

Srikkanth also urged the management to give him a long and consistent run with assurance to get the best out of him.

"Now the question is, how are you going to groom Vaibhav and take him to the next level? You will play Afghanistan, the West Indies, and all of that. Tell him that for the next 20 games he will not be dropped at all and give him that confidence; that boy will also improve his temperament. That boy showed that he's got maturity and can play various kinds of shots. He read the wicket well,” Srikkanth concluded.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi had made his India debut in T20Is against England but failed to impress with the bat. But he redeemed himself on testing pitches in Zimbabwe.