Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s cricket journey, that has already started taking wings, will reach new heights when he gets down to action with the senior Indian men’s cricket team for the tour of Ireland and England.
The 15-year-old is already a star after he finished as the top-scorer in IPL 2026 with a tally of 776 runs. Now, if he makes his senior debut against Ireland or England, he will be the youngest to do so in Indian cricket history.
While Sooryavanshi will be part of the Indian dressing room, he will have to use a separate changing room for ‘safeguarding reasons on his first international tour in England this summer’, according to a report in The Guardian.
The England series is an ICC-approved event and hence the world cricket governing body’s ‘safeguarding procedures’ will be in effect as per the report.
The report said, as per sources, both ICC and ECB prohibit under-16 players from using adult changing rooms. Hence, Sooryavanshi will have his own facilities at all venues. His parents will also accompany him at all venues.
“Sooryavanshi will be permitted in the India dressing room during the game and can attend team talks, with the restriction only applying when he is getting changed before and after each match,” the report added.
Meanwhile, a 15-year-old schoolboy needs to be eased into a senior team set-up, said BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia as he explained the Board’s decision to allow Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s parents to accompany him on the white-ball tour of Ireland and England later this month. The big-hitting Sooryavanshi, who has earned his maiden call-up in the Indian T20 set-up, has been selected for seven games (two vs Ireland and five vs England) on the tour, which begins on June 26 in Belfast.
“You see, not all national teams at the senior level have a 14 or 15-year-old in their squad. After many decades, we have someone like Vaibhav Sooryavanshi,” Saikia told PTI in an exclusive interview.
“At one point in time, it was Sachin Tendulkar (16 and a half at the time of his Test debut) who made it to the national team at such a young age. When such a young kid is part of the senior team, there are obviously a lot of issues that can crop up,” he added without elaborating.
“Therefore, to make him comfortable and help him get used to an adult environment, where all the other players are above 18 years of age, and the team management members are also adults, we felt it would be helpful,” Saikia, a former Ranji Trophy player for Assam, stated further.
“We are doing this because we believe it will ease a lot of issues as far as Vaibhav is concerned.” Saikia cited the example of how senior teachers accompany students on school excursions.
“Even when a school student goes on an excursion, there is usually a senior person accompanying them. Vaibhav is still a kid. He has only just come out of school, or is perhaps in his final year of school.