India bowling coach Morne Morkel refused to give a clear answer when asked whether Vaibhav Sooryavanshi would start in the playing XI for the first T20I against the West Indies on Tuesday. The 15-year-old who recently didn’t get a single game in the three-match series against Afghanistan, made a comeback into the playing XI for the Asian Games, representing the Men in Blue in the semi-final and the final. The VVS Laxman-headed management went in with a longer batting lineup due to the spin-friendly conditions, and hence Vaibhav opened the batting alongside Abhishek Sharma, with Sanju Samson walking out at No.3.
However, the pitches in India are set to be batting-friendly, and hence Gautam Gambhir and Shreyas Iyer might opt to go in with the same combination as the Afghanistan T20Is, relegating Sooryavanshi to the bench.
Ahead of the first T20I against the Windies, Morkel was asked about Sooryavanshi; however, he refused to give a clear answer, saying the combination would depend on how the players are feeling after the Asian Games 2026 campaign, where they won gold after beating Pakistan in the final.
“I’m pretty sure, you know, Gautam will look to rotate. I mean, as I said, that is up to the selectors and the coach and the captain in terms of the playing XI or which playing XI will be the best to win a game for India in our next World Cup. And that has always been the main focus,” Morkel told reporters in the pre-match press conference on Monday.
In terms of the starting XI, like I said, you know, we, the guys, just came back from the Asian Games. So we’re all to see how everybody’s feeling after jet lag, after travelling and then from there, make a plan. Look, I mean, that’s the combination they felt for them at the Asia Games,” he added.
‘We all know his talent’
The Indian bowling coach also added that Vaibhav is learning a lot by being part of the setup, and that it doesn’t matter if he isn’t getting a regular chance in the playing XI, saying the youngster would improve just by being in the presence of the senior players.
“We all know that the talent of Vaibhav, I think the more time he spends in this environment with the quality players, the more time he trains at this standard will only be great for his cricket. And if he’s not getting that game time, he’s still on a bus, in the dugout, in the hotel with guys with a lot of experience. And I think with him sharing that sort of dressing room and talking through guys, just actually watching how the guys go through their processes and how they set up innings will be key for him,” said Morkel.
“And I’m a big believer sometimes, if you put guys in the right environment and they can ask the right questions and they can observe. So I always challenge them. I said, ‘Watch what this guy is doing in training.’ How does he face his first 15 balls? When we get to stuff, what sort of game plan does he come up with? And for any young player, whether he gets game time or that game time is a little limited, it’s still our job to make sure these guys learn, grow, and ask questions. I think that for me is a fantastic growth sort of mind map,” he added.
Sooryavanshi made his debut earlier this year against England, and since then he has played 8 T20Is for the Men in Blue, including a Player of the Series performance against Zimbabwe.
