Former Indian opener Kris Srikkanth showered praised Vaibhav Sooryavanshi after India A registered a comprehensive 66-run win against Sri Lanka A in the final of the tri-series in Dambulla on Sunday (June 21).
Sooryavanshi, who had failed to convert his starts into big scores earlier in the series, smashed a magnum opus knock of 94 runs off just 29 balls. He scored the fastest List A half-century, taking just 11 deliveries to get to the personal milestone.
The left-hander hit 10 fours and eight sixes in his blistering knock as he batted at the top of his game. The youngster scored his runs at a whirlwind strike rate of 324.14 and played a key role in helping India post an above-par score of 377 runs on the board.
Srikkanth said it is a lesson for the opposition not to poke Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
Srikkanth said on his YouTube Channel, “From the IPL we’ve seen that if you act funny with Vaibhav Suryavanshi, you’ve had it. This is the fourth occasion where he has smashed a team after they celebrated too much after his dismissal. The lesson is to keep your mouth shut against youngsters, especially a 15-year-old. The match was over with his knock itself. Yet, if he had not scored, in hindsight, India would have lost the game.”
“He is truly the son of god. His innings was seemingly over by the time I traveled two streets. The Sri Lankan players saw what happens when you irk him. They might have won the trophy if they just went about their business. Are you telling him of all players that this isn’t the IPL? His response is you don’t have a bowling attack at all.”
The 1983 World Cup-winning player said Sooryavanshi is a player who will do wonders for India in the future.
“He has incredible big-match temperament. It is so important for Indian cricket that they groom him properly. He is a national treasure who’ll do wonders for India. All his big knocks are at a minimum of 200 strike rate, when no one else is even in the territory. He is truly a wonder kid and is creating viewership impact all around the world,” said Srikkanth (via the aforementioned source).
Sooryvanshi is part of India’s T20I squad for the upcoming UK tour.
