CHENNAI: Not that handing Vaibhav Sooryavanshi his India cap would have guaranteed a series win in Ireland, but after the historic series loss, the focus has remained on the 15-year-old who continues to wait in the wings. Will Wednesday finally be the day where Sooryavanshi makes history as India take on England in the first of the five T20Is in Durham?
Skipper Shreyas Iyer kept his cards close on the eve of the match. "We can't let everyone know about what combination we are going to play. And let the opponents know that this is going to happen. So, definitely, he is a brilliant prodigy. And whenever he gets an opportunity to play, definitely, he will do brilliantly," Iyer told reporters on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, several former players, including Sunil Gavaskar and Graeme Swann, have batted for the 15-year-old's inclusion in the playing XI. Swann said that if he was India coach he would build a batting line-up around the 15-year-old going forward. "He is a sort of once in a generation talent and the sooner India play him in the full team, the sooner they expose him to international cricket. There is no reason why he cannot be the best player in the world for the next 15 years. I think he's that good," Swann had said in a select-media interaction facilitated by Sony Sports Network on Sunday. "If you can find a way of getting him in and exposing him, he can hit the best bowlers in the world all over the park and destroy them. We saw that. I think the game that stood out for me was against Pat Cummins at the end of the IPL. He absolutely destroyed Pat Cummins, who is one of the best bowlers on the planet. It was incredible to watch first hand. So I think the hype is real about him and it's and it's truly deserved," he added.
Gavaskar, meanwhile, hopes that the teenager will make his debut on Wednesday. "It will be the start of a new series. He gets a team off to a flying start. It's the best way to recover from the series loss against Ireland. How they fit him in is going to be a real tough one because both Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson have done exceedingly well. You don't want to break a partnership which has given you good starts, good results. If I might say, more than a tactical point of view, from a temperament point of view, because England doesn't know what to expect. Yes, some of them would have watched the Ireland matches and would have got some idea how to bowl to some of the Indian batters. But Sooryavanshi hasn't played. So, nobody has seen him. All that they have seen is his videos of his IPL performances. So, if he gets going he can take the game away. I think that is what India need at this particular point of time. For somebody to make the impact straight away. That is what I'm hoping for, whether that will happen. We will just have to wait and see," Gavaskar said in a select media interaction on Monday.
Whose place will he take remains a question. If Samson goes out, it will become a top three of left-handers, an issue they faced in the T20 World Cup. On the other hand, Abhishek was their best batter in Ireland. Either way, the choice may not be easy. But will Shreyas and head coach Gautam Gambhir make that call? Wednesday will tell more.
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