Ravichandran Ashwin has stepped into one of IPL 2026’s liveliest conversations with a clear reading of the new batting crop. Ayush Mhatre and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi have both lit up the season, but Ashwin believes Priyansh Arya looks just a shade further ahead right now because of one crucial difference: he sees a batter who can not only attack, but also go on and make the innings count.
Priyansh’s season has already included a brutal 93 off 37 balls for Punjab Kings against Lucknow Super Giants, an innings that underlined both his power and his ability to turn momentum into a match-shaping score. Vaibhav, meanwhile, has already produced a century in IPL 2025 and forced his way into the centre of the season’s youth conversation, while Mhatre’s early run of scores has marked him out as one of the Chennai Super Kings’ most exciting young batters.
Ashwin backs Priyansh Arya’s bigger-run ability
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ravichandran Ashwin said: “Kisiko upar-neeche laane ka nahi hai, magar ye jo Priyansh Arya hai na. Jitna Ayush Mhatre, jitna Vaibhav Sooryavanshi hain, usse bhi thora ek kadam mujhe lag raha hain agey hain. Compare nahi kar raha hu. Kyunki yeh bada run bana leta hain, inke paas range of shots zyada hain.” (“I am not trying to put anyone above or below anyone, but Priyansh Arya, to me, looks a step ahead even of Ayush Mhatre and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. I am not comparing them, because he goes on to make big scores and he has a wider range of shots.”)
The statement matters because it is more specific than simple praise. Ashwin is not dismissing Mhatre or Vaibhav. In fact, both have already done enough to warrant serious attention. Mhatre has put together an impressive early run, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s aggressive intent announced him to a wider audience instantly and pushed him into a different tier of attention.
What Ashwin appears to be valuing is completeness. In T20 cricket, shot range is not just about entertainment. It changes how bowlers can attack and how captains can set fields. A batter who can access more areas, counter more plans, and still stretch his innings deep enough to produce a major score becomes far harder to contain. That seems to be the lens through which Ashwin is viewing Priyansh.
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There is also a difference between a flashy start and a statement innings. Vaibhav’s ceiling is already obvious, and Ayush Mhatre’s fluency has been impossible to miss. But Ashwin’s line about Priyansh “making big runs” gets to the heart of the debate. He is not only talking about talent. He is talking about a batter who looks capable of converting rhythm into damage on a bigger scale.
IPL 2026 is already crowded with young Indian batting stories, but Ashwin has tried to separate excitement from readiness. Mhatre has elegance, Vaibhav has explosive force, and Priyansh, in Ashwin’s reading, currently carries a slightly more complete T20 package. It is a fine distinction, not a dismissal. But in a season built on thin margins and loud impressions, that one-step-ahead verdict is enough to become a headline.