Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar did not hesitate to issue a stern warning about the growing euphoria around Vaibhav Suryavanshi and other U19 stars.
Ever since his stint with the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season, the 14-year-old left-handed batter has managed to capture the imagination of every household. Suryavanshi, who hails from Samastipur, Bihar, first hogged limelight after hitting a 35-ball century against Gujarat Titans, smashing Mohammed Siraj, Ishant Sharma, Prasidh Krishna and Rashid Khan all around the park.
The batter continued with his form in the Youth ODIs, scoring runs for fun while playing for India against England, Australia and South Africa. The teen sensation is now expected to set the stage on fire in the U19 World Cup. Suryavanshi did not get off to an ideal start, scoring just 2 against the USA, but he bounced back strongly, hitting 72 runs against Bangladesh on Saturday in Bulawayo.
However, Gavaskar believes that there is a huge gap between U19 cricket and first-class cricket, and hence one needs to hold their horses before passing a sweeping statement. The 1983 World Cup winner also highlighted the importance of having a senior player around the U19 group.
“It is too early to call anybody a sensation, as time and again it has been seen that there is a huge gap between Under-19 cricket and first-class cricket, not to speak of international cricket. Some of the batters playing IPL and those picked for this season’s IPL batted as if the opposition attack was nothing and tried to hit straightaway and lost their wickets,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-Day.
“Yes, it’s a young group, inexperienced too and that’s why it’s important for a senior player and mentor to tell them that however ordinary the attack, one mistake can mean you are back in the dugout. Let’s hope that they forget thoughts of IPL and focus on the job at hand, and that is to win the Trophy once again. Go for it, youngsters,” he added.
Earlier, former India women’s team head coach WV Raman had also issued a word of caution for Suryavanshi, saying the youngster playing U19 cricket after the IPL can be “detrimental to his growth.”
Suryavanshi’s comparisons with Sachin Tendulkar
Ever since his IPL debut, Suryavanshi has constantly been likened to Sachin Tendulkar, who made his India debut aged 16. Several pundits believe that the 14-year-old has all the talent in the world and can make it big in international cricket.
The performance in Youth ODIs last year also led to Suryavanshi earning an India A call-up for the Rising Stars Asia Cup, where the side lost the semi-final to Bangladesh.
Suryavanshi then also played the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Bihar, and he started the campaign off with a bang, scoring a century off just 36 balls against Arunachal Pradesh. He finished at a score of 190 off 84 balls with 16 fours and 15 sixes. During this knock, he also bettered AB de Villiers’ fastest 150 in List A cricket by 10 deliveries.