Vaibhav Suryavanshi (screenshot)
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s long-awaited return to competitive cricket for India A ended with a brief stay at the crease as the teenager claimed a 14-run knock in the Tri-Nation A series opener against Sri Lanka A in Dambulla on Tuesday.The young batsman, who attracted widespread attention after his impressive IPL 2026 campaign, entered with a lot of expectations but was unable to convert his debut into a big score.
Sooryavanshi hit just three fours during his 12-ball knock before being caught by Sahan Arachchige off the bowling of Mohammad Shiraz. His dismissal left India A at 16-1 in the fourth over.India A chose to bat first after winning the toss. Along with Sooryavanshi, wicketkeeper-batsman Prabhsimran Singh also departed early for just two runs. However, Priyansh Arya and Ruturaj Gaikwad stabilized the innings with an advantageous partnership before Arya was run out for 32. Gaikwad remained unbeaten with 46 runs, while skipper Tilak Varma was unbeaten on 18 as India A reached 118-3 after 28 overs.Before the match, Sri Lanka, vice-captain Niroshan Dickwella spoke about the excitement surrounding Suryavanshi and the challenge of facing the youngster.
“I’m happy to be a wicket-keeper, because I won’t get a lot of balls when he bats. He’s an exciting talent, and everyone loves the way BCCI is taking him at this age and giving him opportunities in the A team to perform. It’s not just an incentive for young Sri Lankan cricketers, but for youngsters all over the world. He hasn’t played a lot of List A cricket, but this is a good opportunity for him,” he said. To showcase his talent, scout him and show that he is a very good player in the short formats.
“You know, we are looking forward to this competition,” Dickwella told TOI.When asked about plans to contain the Indian pacer, Dickwella said: “We are not trying to stop him, but we will try to do our fundamentals first. We have some plans for him and the entire Indian batting line-up. But, on that day, given his merit in the way he will handle the bowlers, we will try to keep him down. The conditions here are different… I think in the Indian Premier League they have flatter pitches, but here in Sri Lanka we have huge grounds.”