IPL 2026: While South Africa legend AB de Villiers regarded Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as a thorough professional already, India wicket-keeper Jitesh Sharma could only see an easy-go-lucky kid in the Bihar batter.
Within the year of his sensational arrival on the IPL stage, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has gotten the entire cricketing world to stand up and take notice of his exceptionally rare and blinding range as a batter. The dashing Rajasthan Royals southpaw scored the fastest IPL hundred by an Indian in 35 balls last year, and has since butchered records at the under-19 level. The rampage culminated with an ICC U19 World Cup title and a thunderous 80-ball 175 in the final against England in February.
South Africa batting legend AB de Villiers raved about the innate maturity that Sooryavanshi exuded during the tournament. However, de Villiers faced a sharp counter from India and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) wicket-keeper, Jitesh Sharma, who has had the experience of leading Sooryavanshi recently. The 14-year-old had stormed into the India A side last year for the Rising Stars Asia Cup in Qatar, where Jitesh was his captain. And while de Villiers regarded Sooryavanshi as a thorough professional already, Jitesh could only see an easy-go-lucky kid in the Bihar batter.