&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "'Criticising him after two or three matches isn't justified': Sikandar Raza backs Vaibhav Sooryavanshi")
Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza has backed India’s young batting star Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ahead of the three-match T20I series between the two teams, which begins on Jul 23 in Harare. With first-choice opener Sanju Samson unavailable, the 15-year-old is expected to feature in all three matches. Speaking to JioStar before the opening T20I, Raza praised Vaibhav’s talent and said the youngster has the potential to become one of the game’s best if he is guided in the right way.
“I think Vaibhav has a lot of very good senior cricketers around him. If he is managed and handled well, I think Vaibhav could be a generational talent,” Sikandar Raza told JioStar.
Raza also defended Vaibhav after the teenager’s quiet start to international cricket during India’s recent T20I series against England, where he failed to score more than 15 runs in his first few innings. He said it is unfair to judge such a young player after only few matches.
“Vaibhav is a supremely talented cricketer. If a 15-year-old kid is playing international cricket, criticizing him after just two or three matches isn’t justified,” Raza added.
The Zimbabwe skipper also highlighted Vaibhav’s achievements over the past year, including helping India win the ICC U-19 World Cup in Zimbabwe, where he scored a century against England in the final. Raza said the teenager’s rapid rise has been remarkable and stressed that his development should be handled carefully.
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“To see what he has done over the last year, what he has done for India Under-19, and the fact that he made his international debut at the same age, these are no small feats by any means. You don’t get to hear such stories nowadays. Vaibhav is special. It will be important how he is managed and handled.”
Vaibhav earned his place in India’s senior squad after a sensational IPL 2026 season, finishing as the tournament’s highest run-scorer with 776 runs in 16 matches and winning the Orange Cap. He is now set to return to Zimbabwe, the country where he first celebrated a world title with India’s U-19 team earlier this year.
