Dravid warms to Sooryavanshi's talent but flags a scheduling hurdle

Former India head coach Rahul Dravid has no doubt that 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has the talent to crack Test cricket — but the veteran admits the teenager's extraordinary white-ball workload could be the biggest obstacle standing in his way.

Sooryavanshi has taken the cricketing world by storm. At just 15, he has already represented India at senior level, ended the IPL 2026 season as Rajasthan Royals' highest run-scorer with 776 runs, and followed up with an explosive 94 off 29 balls against Sri Lanka 'A' in the List A tri-series final in Colombo. He made his senior India debut against England in July before impressing on tour in Zimbabwe, where he finished with 151 runs — the most by any batter — and claimed the Player of the Series award as India swept the series 2-0.

His white-ball numbers are eye-catching: 193 runs in six T20I innings at a strike rate of 189.21, plus 776 runs in 16 IPL matches at a strike rate of 237.31, with 72 sixes, the Orange Cap and the MVP award.

'You've got to be patient'

But red-ball cricket remains very much a work in progress. Sooryavanshi has played eight first-class matches, scoring 207 runs at an average of 17.25 with one half-century, and he is currently turning out for East Zone in the Duleep Trophy as he seeks more experience in the longer format.

"With Vaibhav, you've got to be patient. He's only 15 years old, and from what I've seen of the kid, I have no doubt that, given the opportunity to practice and play domestic cricket and a couple of seasons of red-ball cricket, he will be able to hold his own in a Test match team. Whether he'll be able to break into the XI with the guys already performing, that's a different story and a tricky one," Dravid told JioHotstar.

Dravid's concern, he stresses, is not about ability but about time. With Sooryavanshi increasingly in demand on the international white-ball circuit, finding long stretches for domestic red-ball cricket could prove difficult.

"Whether he'll have the time to play two full seasons of domestic cricket because he'll be so busy playing for India in the white-ball format, I'm not sure about that. So skill-wise, I think there is no problem; whether he will be able to do it because of schedules might be a bit more tricky."

Eight runs with the bat, two wickets with the ball

A quiet outing with the bat did not stop Sooryavanshi from making an impact in the Duleep Trophy quarter-final against North East Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground 2 in Bengaluru. The East Zone vice-captain scored just eight runs from six deliveries before Bishworjit Konthoujam dismissed him — but he quickly made up for it with the ball.

Sooryavanshi claimed his third first-class wicket with the second delivery of the 28th over, bowling a three-quarter-length delivery outside off stump. Kishan Lyngdoh came down the track to attack but lost his shape and produced a leading edge towards cover, where substitute fielder Denish Das completed a safe catch.

Three deliveries later he struck again. Bowling a good-length delivery around off stump to Imliwati Lemtur, the batter defended from the crease but edged a thinner outside edge, and wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan reacted quickly to hold a sharp catch.

Sooryavanshi's journey in red-ball cricket has been unusual — he made his first-class debut for Bihar in January 2024 at the age of just 12. As he continues to develop in the Duleep Trophy, Drav's message remains clear: patience is the watchword.