Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has created a sensation unlike any other cricketer in the age of social media. And he is yet to play international cricket.
An IPL season that was billed as his toughest test, given the hype he had already generated last year with his historic 35-ball century for Rajasthan Royals, instead became the launchpad for his India career. Sooryavanshi was never in contention for an India call-up. He is only 15. The teenager spent most of last year playing U-19 cricket after his IPL breakthrough. While he did feature in a handful of domestic matches — including a 36-ball List A century against Arunachal Pradesh and a 67-ball 93 in the Ranji Trophy as Bihar’s vice-captain — age-group cricket remained his primary focus.
Yet a staggering IPL 2026 campaign, in which he scored 776 runs at a strike rate of 237.3, smashed a record 72 sixes and swept five individual awards, effectively “forced” the selectors’ hand. Last Saturday, when BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia announced India’s squads for the tours of Ireland and England, along with the Asian Games, Sooryavanshi’s name featured in all three.
The England tour, in particular, will provide a stern examination of the wonderkid given the vastly different conditions from those he encountered during the IPL. But even before he has boarded the flight, Sooryavanshi has already triggered a media frenzy in England ahead of India’s five-match T20I series.
During a recent Sky Sports discussion on the sidelines of the first England-New Zealand Test at Lord’s, former England captain Mike Atherton held up a Daily Mail article on Sooryavanshi. Its headline read: “India’s teen sensation Sooryavanshi is this summer’s MUST-WATCH SHOW.”
Atherton said: “Vaibhav Sooryavanshi — this year’s must-watch. He has been picked in the India T20I squad, which will come after this series (against New Zealand). And there is a media frenzy around this kid already, isn’t there?”
Journalist Elizabeth Ammon of The Times, who was part of the panel, agreed, saying the ECB would be delighted with Sooryavanshi’s selection because of the likely impact on ticket sales. She also admitted that what left her awestruck was the manner in which the Rajasthan Royals batter treated even the world’s best bowlers — launching them for six from the very first ball.
“That absolutely is. And I’d imagine the ECB are happy… that’ll shift a few more tickets! It has been extraordinary watching him in the IPL. And it is the consistency. I have been listening to a few players as well, like Liam Livingstone, who said that he is good even in the nets from ball one; he takes on the best bowlers in the world. Pat Cummins said he just doesn’t know where to bowl to,” she said.
Atherton then pointed to the statistic from the article highlighting Sooryavanshi’s 72 sixes and asked former England batter Mark Butcher about the secret behind the six-hitting spree. Butcher admitted he was almost at a loss to explain it.
“I have no idea. You need to have the intent, and you need to have eyes like an absolute hawk to middle it as often as he does. A strike rate like that over an entire tournament… nuts!” he said.
Atherton wrapped up the discussion by joking that he would have loved to see Sooryavanshi bat on the Lord’s surface used for the first Test against New Zealand — a pitch criticised for its uneven bounce and pronounced seam movement.
“Perhaps we would have loved to see Sooryavanshi bat on this surface. Good luck smacking a few sixes.”
India’s T20I series against England begins on July 1. Before that, Sooryavanshi is set to feature in the India A one-day tri-series in Sri Lanka, followed by a two-match T20I series in Ireland later this month.
