“Grounding is very important”: Aravinda de Silva cautions Vaibhav Sooryavanshi despite meteoric rise

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has already announced himself on the big stage as he recently displayed his talent in the Tri-Nation series in Sri Lanka. The boy wonder scored a brilliant 94 runs off 29 deliveries; he was close to breaking the record for the fastest hundred in List A cricket. Vaibhav will next be featuring in the Ireland and England series.

The 15-year-old teenage sensation had a stellar TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season, where he nearly won every individual award, and after that, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was fast-tracked to the India National Cricket Team for the upcoming T20I series. It will be interesting to watch whether Vaibhav gets a chance in the senior team in the upcoming two series.

Is Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ready for senior debut?

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi won the Orange Cap of IPL 2026 after finishing as the leading run scorer of the competition with 776 runs. He won the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award for his amazing performances throughout the tournament and carried Rajasthan Royals (RR) to the playoffs. Recently, he was involved in a physical fight with Sri Lanka A players after being provoked by them.

Many former and current cricketers and commentators have been awestruck by Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s talent and have warned him of derailment; from the likes of Sachin Tendulkar to Pat Cummins all of them have praised the young talent from India. Some cricketer turned commentators have also compared Sooryavanshi with teenage Sachin Tendulkar. The latest addition to the list is former Sri Lanka World Cup winner Aravinda de Silva.

Play their natural game- Aravinda de Silva

Aravinda de Silva was asked in an exclusive interview with Sportstar about Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, whose fearless approach at such age has caught the attention of the cricketing fraternity. The former compared Sooryavanshi with two former Sri Lanka openers, Romesh Kaluwitharana and Sanath Jayasuriya, who changed the dynamics of providing explosive starts in ODI cricket.

“The shorter format allows these youngsters to come out and express themselves. Sport is all about that freedom,” De Silva said. “During our time, Sanath (Jayasuriya) and Kalu (Romesh Kaluwitharana) were encouraged to play their natural game without worrying about getting out.”

But he also highlighted the importance of guidance for young talents like Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. He stated, “The grounding is very important. Who you listen to and take advice from is very important,” he said. “As long as young players have the willingness to learn and the right people around them, they can have a long and successful career.”

India vs Pakistan bilateral series to revive?

Apart from speaking on Sooryavanshi, De Silva also spoke about the future of Test cricket as he believes that the traditional format of the game is still alive, though the format needs to find a better way to sell its biggest rivalries. He threw light, stating that the format will be alive only if the respective cricket boards package it as marquee games like other major cricket events.

Aravinda de Silva brought up the points to revive the India vs Pakistan rivalry, as he feels that a Test series or any other bilateral series between the two arch rivals in a neutral venue will gain much attention and the fans will come in numbers.