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14-year-old Rajasthan Royals (RR) batting prodigy Vaibhav Suryavanshi made a striking IPL debut. His very first delivery faced in the tournament was dispatched for a six, an audacious start that immediately captured the attention of everyone watching. In his subsequent appearance against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), the young talent from Bihar impressed with a quickfire 16 runs, which included two more towering sixes. However, this promising start has now been met with a word of advice from former Indian batting maestro Virender Sehwag.
The legendary Indian opener has encouraged the young Suryavanshi to set his sights on a long and sustained IPL career, cautioning him against being satisfied with merely a handful of appearances for the Rajasthan Royals. Sehwag specifically urged the youngster to draw inspiration from the career trajectory and longevity of Virat Kohli.
Notably, in both of his initial matches against Lucknow Super Giants and RCB, Suryavanshi adopted an aggressive approach from the outset, looking to attack the bowling from the very first ball he faced. However, in both instances, he did not appear to prioritize the crucial aspect of getting his eye in and building a foundation for his innings.
"If you step out knowing that you will get praised for doing well and criticised for not doing well, you will remain grounded. I have seen many players who come and get fame from one or two matches, then do not do anything because they think that they have become a star player," Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
"Suryavanshi must aim to play for 20 years in the IPL. Look at Virat Kohli; he started playing when he was 19 years old, and now he has played all 18 seasons. That is what he should be trying to emulate. But, if he is happy with this IPL, thinking that he is now a crorepati, had a great debut, hit a six off the first ball, maybe we won't see him next year," he added.
Hailing from Bihar, Vaibhav Suryavanshi entered the IPL 2025 mega auction with a base price of INR 30 lakh. The Rajasthan Royals subsequently secured his services for a significant sum of INR 1.10 crore, a move that also saw him break the record for being the youngest player to be acquired in the auction's history. Despite being part of the squad from the beginning of the season, Suryavanshi had to patiently await his opportunity, finally making his debut in the eighth match of the IPL 2025 campaign. His inclusion in the playing eleven against the Lucknow Super Giants came about due to the absence of Sanju Samson, who was sidelined with a side strain.
In his debut innings against Lucknow, the young left-handed batsman impressed with a brisk 34 runs off just 20 deliveries. He announced his arrival in emphatic fashion by smashing a towering six off the very first ball he faced, bowled by Shardul Thakur. However, RR's fortunes in the tournament have taken a downturn, as evidenced by their recent 11-run defeat against RCB at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, marking their fifth consecutive defeat which has seen him languishing at the eighth position in the current points table.
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