CHENNAI: A day before the 2026 IPL started, teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi turned 15. And what transpired next in little over than two months left everybody bamboozled. The world had already witnessed what Vaibhav can do with the willow in 2025 but the teenager from Bihar took it several notches higher this season when he finished as the leading scorer of the tournament, amassing 776 runs at an awe-inspiring strike rate of 237.30 from 16 matches.
The spectacular show meant his inclusion in India's T20 set up was mere a formality and selectors completed it when they named him in the national squads for England and Ireland tours, and the 2026 Asian Games.
Manish Ojha, Vaibhav's childhood coach, however, feels his ward's entry into the national team only got delayed due to an ICC rule. "I am over the moon but he should have been in the national team for the 2026 T20 World Cup," Ojha told this daily.
The International Cricket Council had introduced minimum age rules a few years ago in its bid to safeguard the players. It clearly said that no player below the age of 15 should play an international match even at U19 level. Sooryavanshi though did that when he helped India win the 2026 U19 World Cup jointly hosted by Zimbabwe and Namibia. But the age barrier apparently prevented the Indian cricket board from giving him a break in the senior set-up.
"You look at any player, be it Yuvraj Singh or Virat Kohli or others, most of them made it to the senior side by excelling at the U19 World Cup. Vaibhav did that a day before the home World Cup started in India. Had that ICC rule not been there, he could have been a World Cup-winning player," says the coach.
But it's better late than never. At At 15 years and 71 days old, Sooryavanshi eventually became the youngest player to feature in an Indian cricket men's team, surpassing the long-standing record held by the great Sachin Tendulkar. The Little Master was 16 years and 205 days when he made his Test debut against Pakistan at Karachi on November 15, 1989.
"There was a time when people in India used to watch match for Tendulkar, then came MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli. But since the last season, people are now watching IPL for Vaibhav. His fan base only swelled this season and it shows his impact on the game. I just hope he continues to shine for years to come," the coach signs off.
Vaibhav might be capable enough to send chills down the spine of world's most fearsome bowlers but he is still a minor. Given his age, the BCCI has decided to send his parents with him for the England and Ireland tour. The same was the case when Tendulkar's brother Ajit accompanied him for his first international tour.
What the ICC rules say
As per ICC Player Eligibility Regulations effective as from October 20, 2018 (amended on April 12, 2021), a player cannot feature in an international match, even at the U19 level, unless he is 15 or above
Article 4 of the regulations determines age of the players for the ICC U19 events
Article 4 A deals with minimum age eligibility and 4.1 says A Player will only be eligible to represent a National Cricket Federation in an International Match (including ICC Events and U19 Events) if he/she is aged 15 or over on the relevant squad submission date (in the case of ICC Events including U19 Events) or on the date of the first match of the series/tournament to the played (in the case of all other International Matches)
Article 5, however, gives exemptions under exceptional circumstances. Article 5.1 says the following may each be exclusively submitted to the Exceptional Circumstances Committee by the relevant National Cricket Federation for consideration and determination as to whether Exceptional Circumstances exist and one them is covered under Article 5.1.3 to justify the participation of a Player under the age of 15 in an International Match or ICC Event.
