Sangakkara backs Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to get India call-up 'very very soon'

Kumar Sangakkara, the head coach and director of cricket for the Rajasthan Royals, believes that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will be called up to play for India soon. Sangakkara also praised the young man for a great season that included three scores of 90 or higher in four innings.

The Royals lost seven wickets to the Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2 despite another heroic knock from Sooryavanshi, who was 15 years old and won the Orange Cap. In the press conference, Sangakkara talked about the season and said that RR was "very, very proud" of Sooryavanshi's season.

He also said that he wanted to make sure that "he keeps going, keeps that intent, keeps that no-fear attitude, and keeps growing." On a used pitch that appeared sluggish in the first half, Sooryavanshi's 96 was a contrast to his knock against SRH in the Eliminator two days earlier.

He faced a barrage of deliveries with short pitches. Sangakkara called it a much tougher innings with wickets falling, but said that the youngster reads situations really well, adding to the ever-growing praise around the 15-year-old's maturity.

When asked if he was ready for an India call-up, Sangakkara said Sooryavanshi has it in him to achieve higher honours soon.

He stated, "You never know if someone's ready until they played," and "with everything Vaibhav has shown against some of the best bowlers in the world, I think he's more than ready to take on any challenge that you throw at him and I'm sure that he'll get that call-up very, very soon." He added, "You never know if anyone's ready until they played."

Sangakkara responded, "I think we've got a good plan around him," when asked how the team will handle him throughout the season and how they plan to monitor him between seasons. He attends all of our team meetings, contributes, listens, and does a lot of homework, so we don't overburden his mind.

He practises well and he reads ball as well, he watches videos and prepares himself really well. So, we don't want to put any unnecessary thoughts into his head, I think a clear mind, batting with that courage is exactly what we want to see of him".

"We'll meet with our medical team to talk about what he might need, then help him, run our camps, and give him enough opportunities to practice with us in Nagpur. Therefore, we will closely monitor not only Vaibhav but also all of our players. Riyan Parag, the captain, said after the game that the team "was not supposed to qualify." However, despite a transitional period and young players, the team made it to the top four. Sangakkara expressed pride in the team's resilience during the campaign's ups and downs. "We have played some bad cricket at times, some great cricket at other times, had injuries, and narrow shaves. And we were able to maintain our composure and focus throughout the ups and downs. And that was great to see.

"The fact that each of these cricketers has contributed their best to each other, the team, and the franchise is what really makes me proud. Nothing more can I ask for. When playing cricket, you can play well but still lose. Additionally, GT were superior to us today. I'd rather be in RR than any other location or dressing room. Sangakkara clarified that RR has moved away from being a "developmental side" and has been focusing hard on building squads that can win them campaigns.

"No, RR is not, probably was (built around youngsters). We deliberated and decided that we would alter that in 2022. And we're going to get as many players that can win matches for us and play now. and are now prepared to play. And that's how we've done everything.

I mean that Vaibhav is unusual. However, we bought him because we thought he would be perfect for our first XI. "For the past four years, we've completely diverted our mentality away from the development angle. In terms of purse utilization, our last auction probably wasn't the best. But that's the way it goes sometimes.

However, I believe that every player at this point: yes, there is occasionally some inexperience. "I thought Riyan's first season as captain, he was excellent. He really managed his team well. He did a very good job managing his own field positions. He will grow and learn.

The other players will also." "And we will simply return better. I think no one really probably gave us a chance to qualify when we started the campaign. But it just goes to show that special things can happen if you work hard, play good cricket, and enjoy it.