Sikandar Raza acknowledged that, stating that whatever the teenager has done over the past one year is no small feat before reaffirming that he is special and needs to be managed well
Published: July 21, 2026, 6:14 PM IST
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India’s Vaibhav Sooryavanshi plays a shot during the third T20 International between India and England during the India tour of England at Trent Bridge in Nottingham, England, on Tuesday, July 7, 2026. (Photo: IANS)
Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza has thrown his support behind India’s teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ahead of his side’s 3-match T20I series against the reigning World T20 champions, starting from July 23, Thursday. Sooryavanshi is expected to feature in all of the three matches due to the absence of first choice opener Sanju Samson.
While speaking on JioStar two days before the 1st T20I in Harare, Sikandar Raza had high praise for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. Raza stated that the 15-year-old has all the qualities to become a generational talent if he is managed properly.
“I think Vaibhav has a lot of very good senior cricketers around him. If he is managed and handled well, I think Vaibhav could be a generational talent,” Sikandar Raza told JioStar.
Raza also spoke about Vaibhav’s slow start to international cricket after the latter got out for less than 15 runs on his first T20Is for India during the recently concluded series against England. The Zimbabwe captain affirmed that the teenager is “supremely talented” but throwing criticism towards him after two or three outings is not justified.
“Vaibhav is a supremely talented cricketer. If a 15-year-old kid is playing international cricket, criticizing him after just two or three matches isn’t justified,” Raza added.
It was on Zimbabwean soil that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi had his first taste of what it’s like to be a world champion when he won the ICC U-19 World Cup earlier this year. He even smashed a century against England in the finale which India won by 100 runs. In two days’ time, Sooryavanshi will return to that same place where he lifted the coveted trophy.
Sikandar Raza acknowledged that, stating that whatever the teenager has done over the past one year is no small feat before reaffirming that he is special and needs to be managed well.
“To see what he has done over the last year, what he has done for India Under-19, and the fact that he made his international debut at the same age, these are no small feats by any means. You don’t get to hear such stories nowadays. Vaibhav is special. It will be important how he is managed and handled,”
Notably, Sooryavanshi was called up to the senior national side after a tremendous Indian Premier League 2026 season where he took home the Orange Cap (most runs) for scoring 776 runs from 16 matches.
