Kapil Dev Explains Why India Should Play Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Recalls Sachin Tendulkar’s Debut

India’s 1983 World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev believes the Indian team management should pick Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the playing XI if they feel he is ready, without worrying about his age.

The 15-year-old batting sensation has been one of the biggest talking points of India’s tour of England after missing out on the playing XI in the T20I series against Ireland and the opening T20I against England despite an outstanding IPL 2026 season.

Sooryavanshi was the Orange Cap winner in IPL 2026 after scoring 776 runs in 16 matches for Rajasthan Royals. He batted at a staggering strike rate of 237.30 and also broke the record for the most sixes in a single IPL season, smashing 72 maximums.

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Kapil acknowledged that many believe it may be too early to hand Sooryavanshi an international debut. However, he also warned that waiting too long could be a mistake. The former India captain cited Sachin Tendulkar’s example, recalling how there were similar doubts when the batting legend made his international debut at the age of 16.

“Look, there are two things. We can talk about Sachin because he was also at this age when he played, and we used to think, ‘Oh, is it going to be too early? Is it too early?’ But if you look at history, you will realise that sometimes it shouldn’t get too late either.

When you are on the rise, you should just play. So I feel that if he is ready, then don’t count his age; count his ability. If it feels like he can play based on his ability, then definitely play him,” Kapil Dev told Sports Tak.

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Kapil also said that every great cricketer goes through difficult phases, and Sooryavanshi will be no different. According to him, the real challenge for the youngster will be how he responds when he eventually faces a lean patch.

“It’s not that he won’t go through a bad patch; difficult times will come. How will he get out of that bad patch? Whether it is Sachin Tendulkar, Sunil Gavaskar, or Viv Richards, all players go through rough times. How a talented cricketer of his caliber emerges from that rough patch remains to be seen. At the moment, we aren’t even saying he has a bad patch. He looks so talented, it’s beyond what one could have imagined. Perhaps his confidence is very high.”