Vaibhav Suryavanshi (Image credit: ICC)
New Delhi: South African batting legend AB de Villiers has thrown his weight behind India’s decision to give teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi his first international call-up, describing the selectors’ move as the “right decision” and a “brave decision”.The 15-year-old made history on Saturday when he was named in India’s squad for the tours of Ireland, England and the Asian Games, becoming the youngest player ever selected for the national team and surpassing the mark set by Sachin Tendulkar in 1989.
Speaking at an event in Mumbai, de Villiers said the selectors deserve praise for resisting the temptation to opt for experience.“It is definitely the right decision from the selectors. Thank you for making the brave decision.
It was easy to say that he was still very young and unprepared, and was seeking more experience. “He has broken down that door and deserves his place in the Indian T20 team, so I am happy for him,” the former South Africa captain said.
“There is no doubt that Sooryavanshi has talent.”
While de Villiers refrained from making specific predictions on Suryavanshi’s red-ball future, he expressed confidence that the youngster possesses the necessary skill set to succeed in all competitions if he chooses this path.
“Yes, he’s a great talent. The red ball question I can never answer. I think he could if he wanted to, but that’s your answer, and there’s also the big question is does he really want it? Time will tell. There’s no doubt he has the talent and ability to do it. It’s not always going to be easy, and I’ve mentioned that many times before,” De Villiers said.The batsman acknowledged that Test cricket would present a different set of challenges, but backed the Bihar-born prodigy to overcome them.“If he decides to play red-ball cricket, there will be some challenges, but he has the skill and ability to overcome that and, in my opinion, I hope he tries to play Test cricket, but I doubt it. We will see in the future,” he added.Sooryavanshi’s rise has been nothing short of extraordinary. The Rajasthan Royals opener dominated IPL 2026 with 776 runs at a staggering strike rate of 237.30 and smashed the record of 72 sixes.
