Former England captain Michael Vaughan has backed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and stated that he should be considered by India for the white-ball tour of England in July later this year. Vaughan praised the teenager after he helped Rajasthan Royals defeat Chennai Super Kings by eight wickets on Monday in their IPL 2026 match in Guwahati with a 15-ball half-century. Sooryavanshi will be the youngest Indian to participate in men’s international cricket if he plays for England.
The record is currently held by Sachin Tendulkar, who made his debut against Pakistan in Karachi in 1989 at the age of 16 years and 205 days. Sooryavanshi must be introduced to the Indian team environment from a young age, according to Vaughan.
“I am just looking ahead here, and I know we’re probably getting ahead of ourselves since it’s only the first innings of the IPL. But with a white-ball tour of England coming up in a few months, if I were Indian cricket, I’d take him on that tour,” Vaughan told Cricbuzz.
“I am not saying he necessarily walks straight into the XI because there are players already in the side, but he needs to be brought into the Indian setup and exposed to that environment. If he ends up playing one or two games, fantastic, but the key is to get him on that tour,” Vaughan added.
While Vaughan urged India to select Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for the England tour, former India all-rounder R Ashwin encouraged patience, saying the teenager should be allowed to grow naturally.
Supporting Sooryavanshi’s extraordinary skill and prospects for India in the future, Ashwin stated that there was no need to put too much pressure on him right now and that his time would come.
“Don’t give him such a target. He is not even a guy, he is a kid. If MS Dhoni is playing till 45 [44]and if Suryavanshi plays till 40, he has two and a half decades left in cricket. Leave him alone, he will come on his own when the time is right,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
“He is too good to not play for India. He will play anyway eventually. When will he play? For that, we might have to wait a bit. Why are we always in a hurry?” Ashwin added.
Sooryavanshi will be concentrating on maintaining his strong play in the Royals’ upcoming match against Shreyas Iyer’s Punjab Kings on April 3 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, while the discussions about an India call-up have already started.
