IRE vs IND, 1st T20I: Why India delayed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's debut in Ireland
India left 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi out of the first T20I against Ireland in Belfast. Shreyas Iyer said senior World Cup winners were backed, a call Sanjay Manjrekar hailed as merit-based.
There was plenty of anticipation. For more than a fortnight after the 15-year-old was picked in India's T20I squad, there had been growing expectation that June 26 would be the day Vaibhav Sooryavanshi made history. It was widely anticipated that he would become the youngest cricketer to receive an India cap in Belfast, breaking Sachin Tendulkar's 37-year-old record. Live Updates | Scorecard
However, the Indian team delayed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's debut. Newly-appointed captain Shreyas Iyer confirmed that the teenager had not made the playing XI for the opening T20I of the series in Belfast.
When asked to explain the decision, Shreyas said the team management wanted to back the senior players who had been part of India's T20 World Cup-winning squad. Incidentally, this is India's first T20I since winning the World Cup in March.
"Unfortunately no. He is a gun player. But, we have experience in the team. And the seniors have done brilliantly in the past couple of series for India. So, we are backing the majority of them who have done absolutely marvelously. So, I think he will get his opportunity when the time comes. But, for now, we are going with three genuine seamers, one all-rounder and two spinners," Iyer said.
Backing the big call, former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar said he was pleased India resisted the temptation to rush the 15-year-old into the XI, stressing that it would have been unfair to drop either Sanju Samson or Abhishek Sharma.
"You can't drop Abhishek Sharma after he's scored a 50 off 20 balls in the World Cup final. Samson just went crazy during the World Cup. His last three scores were 93 not out, 89 and 89. So you can't drop those people just because we are excited about the young boys," he told Sony LIV.
"India are doing the right thing and that's the right message. They have dropped a key World Cup-winning captain, Suryakumar Yadav. So India are now focused on cricketing merit, which is how it should always be. I'm glad they haven't got too carried away with the excitement around this young kid. He can wait his turn, and he's got time on his hands."
INDIA PLAYING XI VS IRELAND IN 1st T20I
Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna.
The anticipation built on tangible, jaw-dropping momentum rather than mere hype. Just weeks before arriving in Belfast, the 15-year-old prodigy had systematically dismantled bowling attacks on the domestic and franchise circuits.
On the eve of the opening fixture, India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak addressed the massive elephant in the room: why the team might choose to delay the schoolboy's historic debut despite his ungodly talent.
"Vaibhav is very talented, there is no doubt," Kotak told reporters in the pre-match press conference.
"And the way he has batted in IPL and all the other games, there is no need to tell that he has got a lot of natural abilities.
"But I don't think that just to give him an opportunity, we should drop someone who has already been scoring runs. That also won't be right. I think there is a very thin line between trying to give somebody an opportunity and you being unfair to some other player."
Yet, looking at the numbers, it is easy to see why the public clamoured for his inclusion. Sooryavanshi headed to Ireland after a match-winning 94 from just 28 balls against Sri Lanka A in a one-day tri-series final last week. Sooryavanshi had hit his fifty in just 11 deliveries, setting a new List A record.
A month ago, the young opener walked away with the Orange Cap as IPL 2026's highest run-scorer, amassing a staggering 776 runs in 16 matches at an extraordinary strike rate of 237.30. Along the way, he smashed a record-breaking 72 sixes, eclipsing Chris Gayle's long-standing single-season record-and single-handedly carried the Royals through the playoffs with a brutal 97 off 29 balls in the Eliminator and a 96 in Qualifier 2.
There was plenty of anticipation. For more than a fortnight after the 15-year-old was picked in India's T20I squad, there had been growing expectation that June 26 would be the day Vaibhav Sooryavanshi made history. It was widely anticipated that he would become the youngest cricketer to receive an India cap in Belfast, breaking Sachin Tendulkar's 37-year-old record. Live Updates | Scorecard
However, the Indian team delayed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's debut. Newly-appointed captain Shreyas Iyer confirmed that the teenager had not made the playing XI for the opening T20I of the series in Belfast.
When asked to explain the decision, Shreyas said the team management wanted to back the senior players who had been part of India's T20 World Cup-winning squad. Incidentally, this is India's first T20I since winning the World Cup in March.
"Unfortunately no. He is a gun player. But, we have experience in the team. And the seniors have done brilliantly in the past couple of series for India. So, we are backing the majority of them who have done absolutely marvelously. So, I think he will get his opportunity when the time comes. But, for now, we are going with three genuine seamers, one all-rounder and two spinners," Iyer said.
Backing the big call, former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar said he was pleased India resisted the temptation to rush the 15-year-old into the XI, stressing that it would have been unfair to drop either Sanju Samson or Abhishek Sharma.
"You can't drop Abhishek Sharma after he's scored a 50 off 20 balls in the World Cup final. Samson just went crazy during the World Cup. His last three scores were 93 not out, 89 and 89. So you can't drop those people just because we are excited about the young boys," he told Sony LIV.
"India are doing the right thing and that's the right message. They have dropped a key World Cup-winning captain, Suryakumar Yadav. So India are now focused on cricketing merit, which is how it should always be. I'm glad they haven't got too carried away with the excitement around this young kid. He can wait his turn, and he's got time on his hands."
INDIA PLAYING XI VS IRELAND IN 1st T20I
Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna.
The anticipation built on tangible, jaw-dropping momentum rather than mere hype. Just weeks before arriving in Belfast, the 15-year-old prodigy had systematically dismantled bowling attacks on the domestic and franchise circuits.
On the eve of the opening fixture, India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak addressed the massive elephant in the room: why the team might choose to delay the schoolboy's historic debut despite his ungodly talent.
"Vaibhav is very talented, there is no doubt," Kotak told reporters in the pre-match press conference.
"And the way he has batted in IPL and all the other games, there is no need to tell that he has got a lot of natural abilities.
"But I don't think that just to give him an opportunity, we should drop someone who has already been scoring runs. That also won't be right. I think there is a very thin line between trying to give somebody an opportunity and you being unfair to some other player."
Yet, looking at the numbers, it is easy to see why the public clamoured for his inclusion. Sooryavanshi headed to Ireland after a match-winning 94 from just 28 balls against Sri Lanka A in a one-day tri-series final last week. Sooryavanshi had hit his fifty in just 11 deliveries, setting a new List A record.
A month ago, the young opener walked away with the Orange Cap as IPL 2026's highest run-scorer, amassing a staggering 776 runs in 16 matches at an extraordinary strike rate of 237.30. Along the way, he smashed a record-breaking 72 sixes, eclipsing Chris Gayle's long-standing single-season record-and single-handedly carried the Royals through the playoffs with a brutal 97 off 29 balls in the Eliminator and a 96 in Qualifier 2.
