Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers reacted to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi making his international debut for India against England, saying that it was about time he got his chance, and he would have played the 15-year-old in the Ireland series.
de Villiers said that he now looked forward to the path which the left-hander would take moving forward, adding that he hoped he would find the right guidance to face the challenges that would confront him.
“Congratulations, young man, on making your debut and, on top of that, becoming the youngest-ever player to represent India. I think he was 15 years and 99 days old when he made his debut. That’s ridiculous. It’s funny for me to say, but it’s about time. I would have played him against Ireland already, just to give him a taste of international cricket, get him onto the scene and build that experience as soon as possible,” de Villiers said on his YouTube channel.
“Now, the road ahead for Vaibhav is going to be fascinating. For a lot of youngsters growing up, the ultimate goal is to play for your country. So where does he go from here at the age of 15? Has he reached his goal now? Is he going to be a flash in the pan, or does he want to become truly great and be remembered in cricket history alongside names like Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis, Sir Garfield Sobers and Viv Richards? Does he want to be mentioned among those names, or simply be remembered as the youngest player ever to play for India?”
“It’s going to be interesting to see how his journey evolves. I’m a big fan. I think the potential is monumental, as long as he can find a blueprint that he can stick to — something to always fall back on.”
“I believe ODIs will come after the T20Is, and hopefully Test cricket as well. If that’s the road ahead for him across all three formats, there will be tricky times. There will be obstacles and difficult moments. I’ve said this so many times before, and I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but he’s going to need guidance and mentorship if he’s going to succeed across all three formats.”
“But let’s not jump the gun. Let’s celebrate him for now. What a phenomenal talent. I’m hoping he gets some runs. He only scored 14 in that first T20I against England. For what it’s worth, he looked at home,” he added.
de Villiers also backed new India T20I captain Shreyas Iyer despite losses to Ireland and in the second T20I against England, adding that he deserved more time in the job and that he was a fan of his style of leadership.
“Shreyas is just starting out. Give him a break. Give him an extended period of time to prove if he is the right guy or not. It does not take one loss or one victory, for that matter, to prove that you are a good player or captain. I think Shreyas deserves a bit of time. I have always loved him as a captain in the IPL, with his calm demeanour. By no means do I think Rajat (Patidar) can’t do it,” de Villiers said.
“I think he is a valid person to take India forward in future, perhaps. But it will be unfair to give Shreyas one or two or three games and say, ‘no, no, no, he is not the guy’. He has been selected now, and I think he deserves an extended period, even though I absolutely love Rajat. Let Rajat focus on RCB for now on winning more trophies. Three in a row would be nice, and then we can maybe talk about the captain of India,” he added.
The 42-year-old said that he would not be too worried despite India losing a few games, adding that they were not a team in a rebuilding phase currently.
“I wouldn’t be too worried if I were an Indian fan because the quality of the team will, at some stage, come through. There’s no doubt about that. It’s got more to do with leadership, direction and experience. There are quite a few young faces. Yes, they’ve got a lot of experience through the IPL, but international cricket is different, especially when you’re travelling away from home. They’ve played Ireland and now England, who are a tough team to beat. England are a really good white-ball side, and they’re also in a rebuilding phase.”
“I wouldn’t say India are in a rebuilding phase, but they are trying some new talent. These are players who are well known on the IPL stage but not so much on the global stage of international cricket yet. I think the bigger concern is getting the right setup, the right pairings and the right match-ups. The players also need time to gain experience and get used to a new captain. Suryakumar Yadav is still settling into the role, trying to lead from the front and establish how this Indian team wants to play T20 cricket going forward,” de Villiers said.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi of India during the 2nd T20 International match between England and India at the Old Trafford, Manchester, England on July 4, 2026. (CREIMAS) 
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