Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has enjoyed one of the most euphoric starts to a cricket career in ages, and given his rising popularity, the kid could well go on to become a household name in Indian cricket. Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli… and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi? Quite possible. Riding the Vaibhav Sooryavanshi wave, even the Rajasthan Royals have become one of the most talked-about Indian Premier League (IPL) teams in recent times. For the longest time, the Royals, who won the inaugural IPL season, went without enjoying the kind of fanfare teams like the Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru have. Sure, they had Sanju Samson and Jos Buttler as their faces, but the level of popularity Sooryavanshi has brought himself and the franchise is unprecedented. RR picked him up at the IPL 2024 mega auction for ₹1.1 crore, and ever since, the investment has been reaping rich dividends.
Then again, come to think of it, what if Sooryavanshi were to headline an auction? Rest assured, he would not only become the costliest player of all time, but there’s a strong chance he would become the first cricketer to breach the INR 30-crore mark. Rajasthan Royals, hold on to your poster boy, because former England pacer Stuart Broad has issued a timely reminder that Sooryavanshi is not contractually bound, and when the time comes, the teenage sensation could well explore his options — including a potential move to the Mumbai Indians.
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“Fair play to Rajasthan Royals’ scouting and academy system, whatever they have done. I remember when they signed him at the auction – he was 14, maybe even 13 – and I thought it was a bit odd for top-flight domestic cricket to bring in someone so young. I wondered if they were simply going to keep him around the squad for three years, and I even questioned the point of it, because it’s not like you can sign him to a 10-year contract; he could always leave for the Mumbai Indians,” Broad told former England teammate Jos Buttler on the ‘For The Love of Cricket’ podcast.
Buttler likes to watch Sooryavanshi
Buttler, who recently told Sooryavanshi he is in awe of his batting, could not help but reiterate his admiration for the 15-year-old taking world cricket by storm. To have plundered bowlers of the calibre of Jasprit Bumrah, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins, smashing all three for a first-ball six each, is something unheard of. In Sooryavanshi, Indian cricket has discovered a gem, a box-office attraction, and Buttler’s admission only reinforces that belief.
“He is only 15 and he is playing with the fearlessness of peak Chris Gayle or Virender Sehwag — except those guys were 30 or 35 when they were doing it. He is just consistently whacking bowlers around the park. It’s outrageous. That’s the kind of player he is. When Rajasthan are playing, I feel like I need to switch on the TV just to watch him bat. He is that exciting. He got out first ball against Sunrisers in the previous game — popped one up, the risk that comes with playing that fearless brand of cricket — and then comes back the next time and peels off a hundred against them,” mentioned Buttler.