The first T20I match between India and England will be played on Wednesday at Chester-le-Street and everyone is eagerly awaiting the appearance of Vaibhav Suryavanshi in Indian colours. The 15-year-old prodigy from Bihar has become a household name after his heroics in the IPL, U-19 cricket and Team India. As a result, he was rewarded with his first international call-up in the T20I series against Ireland and England. However, Shreyas Iyer and company did not include Suryavanshi in the XI for the match against Ireland and India suffered a humiliating 0-2 defeat.
Ahead of the first T20I against England, former spinner Graeme Swann warned Harry Brook and company about Sooryavanshi’s explosive potential, saying they would find it extremely difficult to prepare for it.
“It is difficult to prepare for a player like Vaibhav Suryavanshi. He is still new to international cricket but he has already played two seasons in the IPL. That means there is footage. Some England bowlers may have played him in the IPL. But the truth is that no one has had much success against him so far. He looked almost unplayable,” Swann said on JioStar.
Swann added that only one bowler in the England squad may have a slight advantage over Sooryavanshi – Jofra Archer – as the player spent a lot of time with the 15-year-old at Rajasthan Royals during the IPL.
“The only bowler who might have a slight edge is Jofra Archer. He saw Sooryavanshi from the bench, threw the ball to him in the nets and watched him closely. He probably saw it more than anyone else,” he added.
Speaking on the opening T20I, India captain Shreyas Iyer refused to reveal whether the young sensation will make his international debut but backed Sooryavanshi to shine whenever he gets the chance.
“You never know what’s going to happen,” he said at Tuesday’s pre-match press conference. “Our hands are now tied as to what we will do. This is a personal matter. This is something we discuss within the team. We cannot reveal our combination to our opponents.”
“Everyone on the team performed. This is not one person. We need to build confidence and give every player a chance so that everyone feels good going into tournaments. The players who helped India win the T20 World Cup understand the format; they were necessary. So it’s important to support them.”
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