Kamran Akmal suggested that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will soon make his debut for India in T20I cricket.© PTI
Former Pakistan cricketers Kamran Akmal and Basit Ali have backed young sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for a fast-tracked India debut following his blistering start to IPL 2026. The 15-year-old left-hander grabbed headlines on Monday by smashing 52 off 17 balls-including a record-equaling 15-ball fifty during Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) dominant eight-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Sooryavanshi’s explosive opening stand effectively killed the contest after RR’s bowlers had earlier restricted the five-time champions to a meager 127.
Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Akmal suggested that Sooryavanshi will soon make his debut for India in T20I cricket.
“In just 8 IPL games, he has been piling records – he already has a hundred. I think in the coming international games for India, he will get a chance after IPL. He will become a young player of the T20 international team. He has proved himself in every place. If he continues to perform, he will definitely get the chance,” Akmal said on ‘The Game Plan‘ YouTube channel.
Akmal also praised Sooryavanshi’s remarkable game awareness, suggesting that bowlers may be “clueless” in a decade’s time if the 15-year-old continues his current trajectory.
“His presence of mind, game awareness, the way he plays – he has a counter to everything at such a young age. This is remarkable … We are discussing his performance more because it was a match of 128. But his performance is visible because he scored 50 runs on 15 balls. His family and his father should be proud – the way he has worked with him, the way the others, too, like coaches who have taught him in school cricket, in club cricket…I am afraid – when he is 25, the bowlers will not know what to do with him,” he added.
In a lighthearted take, Basit labelled Sooryavanshi as “ek bablu sabpe bhari” (one kid domination everyone), highlighting how easily he dismantled the CSK bowlers.
“They (Rajasthan Royals) chased down 128 comfortably. Suryavanshi smashed 50 off just 15 balls-what an innings, he clearly showed his form. Jaiswal remained not out on 37, as Bablu (Suryavanshi) was doing all the damage from the other end. One Bablu dominated everyone – that’s exactly how it felt in yesterday’s (RR vs CSK) match,” said Basit.