Gautam Gambhir: Former selector slams “foolish” decision. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi made headlines by becoming the youngest player to score a maiden T20I half-century during India’s first T20I against Zimbabwe, reaching the mark in just 18 balls. The 15-year-old’s explosive knock silenced critics after he managed only low scores of 14, 13, and 15 in his earlier appearances against England.
Krishnamachari Srikkanth, former India captain and ex-BCCI selector, expressed shock over the decision to drop Sooryavanshi after just three failures. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Srikkanth questioned head coach Gautam Gambhir’s move, saying, How did Gautam Gambhir foolishly drop him, of all people, after three failures to crush his confidence? He praised Sooryavanshi’s effortless shot-making and disciplined batting, noting the youngster never played a cross-batted shot.
Srikkanth also revealed Sooryavanshi’s dedication, explaining that after the England series he went straight to the Rajasthan Royals camp to work on his batting against short balls rather than taking a break. I salute Vaibhav for his dedication, Srikkanth added. The former selector highlighted the teenager’s fearless approach, stating that most players would have played safely after low scores, but Sooryavanshi attacked without worrying about consequences.
With Gautam Gambhir absent from the Zimbabwe tour, VVS Laxman serves as interim head coach. Sooryavanshi’s record-breaking innings strengthens his case as one of India’s most exciting young talents, while highlighting ongoing selection dilemmas for the team management.