Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar strongly criticized the Indian team management's decision to drop teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for the fifth and final T20I against England in Southampton on Saturday (July 11).
Gavaskar voiced his sharp disappointment as the Gautam Gambhir-led management sidelined Sooryavanshi after just three chances to bring back Sanju Samson, who was also benched midway through the series.
Sooryavanshi made his historic international debut in the second T20I at Old Trafford last week. At just 15 years and 99 days old, the southpaw broke Sachin Tendulkar's long-standing record as the youngest-ever Indian to debut in men’s international cricket.
However, the young prodigy failed to live up to the expectations, returning with scores of 14, 13, and 15 in three outings. He eventually faced the axing as the visitors made a couple of changes to their playing XI for the fifth T20I.
However, Gavaskar was not one bit pleased with the call to omit Sooryavanshi, who was rewarded with a place in the national side after a record-breaking IPL 2026 campaign.
"Not having him in the team is very, very disappointing," Gavaskar said on Sony Sports, shaking his head after the decision was announced at the toss.
"The thing about opening batters is that they can bat down the order in the white-ball format. He has shown potential. If this was a must-win game, I would have agreed with the call to play some experienced guy. This is a nothing game. I think we have missed out on an opportunity. I just hope that somebody puts an arm around his shoulder and tells him that this is not the end. I just think it is a little hard to drop a 15-year-old after just three matches," Gavaskar added.
Former England spinner Graeme Swann, who was also part of the panel discussion, echoed similar sentiments. He argued that if the Indian think tank truly believed Sooryavanshi was a generational talent, they needed to give him more opportunities than just three matches.
"In the three games that he has played, he has shown what he is capable of. If he had been blown away in those three games, wide-eyed, stumps everywhere, then fair enough. You are bringing back Sanju, who got 5, 0, 1. At least this kid got 13, 14, 15. Sanju, in the last three games, did not know where the runs were coming from," Swann stated.
"You have now got Sooryavanshi out of the way, but he is 15. You have to tread a bit lightly because he is not emotionally developed, and this could knock him back three or four months. I think that if you have a 15-year-old who could be one of the best ever, you have to nurture that. He has become the victim of the team's performance," Swann remarked.
The Men in Blue have already conceded an unassailable 0-3 lead to England in the series, and are playing for pride in the fifth T20I.
India Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to field first in Southampton. In another change, Washington Sundar was replaced by Suryavansh Shedge in the playing XI.
India’s playing XI for 5th T20I: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson(w), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Suryansh Shedge, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Prasidh Krishna
