Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is reminiscent of a young Sachin Tendulkar, according to former India pacer Atul Wassan, who says the teenager’s maturity, daring, and brave approach remind him of the batting great’s early days during India’s 1989 tour of Pakistan.
With 776 runs from 16 innings at a remarkable strike rate of 237.30, Sooryavanshi topped the batting charts and became the breakout star of the just ended IPL season. The 15-year-old made an impression with his courageous performances against some of the best bowlers in the world, such as Pat Cummins, Kagiso Rabada, and Jasprit Bumrah.
“He is a one in a million generational talent. Can you imagine the maturity and audacity of this boy? He reminds me of 16-year-old Sachin Tendulkar. I saw Sachin and that game maturity and audacity to take the bull by the horns (during the 1989 tour of Pakistan). God has blessed him with X factor along with the game & power,” Wassan told PTI in an exclusive chat on Tuesday.
In 1989, Tendulkar, then 16 years old, made his India debut against a potent Pakistani bowling attack that featured Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Abdul Qadir, and Imran Khan.
Everyone was impressed by Tendulkar’s unwavering and focused drives. He was a rising star, as seen by the poise and timing with which he crossed those limits.
“Though he has a long way to go. I hope everything falls into place just like it did for Sachin. The same God gifted X factor talent I see in Sooryavanshi.”
Wassan emphasized that Sooryavanshi’s long-term growth would depend on appropriate coaching and whether or not he is motivated to develop into a “complete cricketer” as opposed to just a T20 specialist.
“The only thing that bothers me is that is he being mentored enough to aspire for the Test cap? He is king of this format (T20). He has got the game. But does he have more talent than just hitting sixes?” Wassan said.
The former captain of Delhi cautioned against putting too much pressure on the teenager to break records at such a young age.
“It will be unfair to put the burden of breaking records. He should not be thinking or made to think about the records. He should aspire to become complete players like Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Virat Kohli.
“They took their game to a higher and higher level with longevity. There will be a time when you have to change your game. During challenging times, if he can go back to the basics and ethos of the game then he will emerge as a great player. So it all depends upon who all mentor him and how. Guys like (Anil) Kumble and Dravid can keep in good stead.”
According to Wassan, a batter’s actual position in the game is eventually decided by their Test cricket performances.
“‘Test’ is the real test. A player gets respect from Test cricket only. You could hit those sixes as the grounds were a bit short. But when there will be three slips, no restrictions on bouncers, big grounds and tough conditions, if you do well there, you earn respect before the eyes of your contemporaries.”
Wassan claimed that even one of the most destructive T20 players received more reputation when he showed himself in the longest format, drawing comparisons to the legendary Chris Gayle of the West Indies.
“If you have a range of Chris Gayle. Gayle is Gayle because he scored a triple hundred in Test cricket. Gayle is arguably among one of the greatest T20 batters.”
Sooryavanshi was already prepared for the battle for Team India, Wassan continued.
“Sooryavanshi has shown that he is ready to play international cricket. He has taken all the bowlers in the world apart. He just walks in the Indian team. Where will you fit him is the job of the coach! In T20, one, two and three are all openers for me so it doesn’t matter, ” he concluded.
