India Asked To Stop Picking Vaibhav Sooryavanshi In U19 Teams: 'It Should Be...'

Former India cricketer WV Raman wants Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, 14, to advance beyond the Under-19 level already. Raman, who was in the race with Gautam Gambhir for becoming the men’s national team head coach, believes the age-group level is ‘detrimental’ to Sooryavanshi’s growth and against the ‘big picture’.

The remark came during the Under-19 World Cup in Zimbabwe. India played their first match against the USA and won by six wickets (DLS). Sooryavanshi picked up a wicket with his part-time spin in the first innings but managed just two runs off the bat in the second, getting bowled against Ritvik Appidi after failing to get a clean strike away following a rushed charge down the ground.

“This could be an unpopular opinion. #Suryavanshi has performed

extremely well in the A series and the IPL. Making him play at the U-19 level is likely to be detrimental to his growth. He may win matches no doubt, but it should be always be about the big picture,” Raman wrote on X.

It would be interesting to know the answer if someone could ask Raman what level he would play Sooryavanshi, if not the Under-19. The 14-year-old has already played domestic cricket across formats for Bihar, starring in senior-level competitions like the Ranji Trophy, and also for India ‘A’ in multi-national tournaments like the Rising Stars Asia Cup.

If he were to miss the World Cup, he’d have no competitive matches to play until the IPL in March, as Bihar are out of the 2025-26 Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Indeed, some have made a case for Sooryavanshi to be fast-tracked to the senior national team and comparisons have been made with the legendary Sachin Tendulkar. The temptation hasn’t been helped by Sooryavanshi’s still scarcely believable record century against the Gujarat Titans in the IPL last year.

However, it’s hard to see the selectors going that route considering the quality of opening options available across formats. Moreover, Sooryavanshi’s choppy form confirms that, as talented as he is, he’s still a teenager who’s trying to find his way around an international sport, which will take time and patience from not just him, but the entire ecosystem wanting to see him succeed.