Sehwag sees shades of his own fearless style in Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

Former India opener Virender Sehwag said Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s batting reminded him of his own fearless style and advised the teenage sensation to focus on building a long career for the country.

With 17,253 international runs to his name, Sehwag is well ahead of the 15-year-old, who has scored 246 runs in eight T20Is, albeit at a blistering strike rate of 186.

“Sooryavanshi is in his prime, and his thinking is somewhat similar to mine, that of hitting right from the first ball. Now, it is about when he gets the opportunity and how many matches he plays for India,” Sehwag said during a discussion at the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s annual session here on Saturday.

The 47-year-old said a player’s age shouldn’t be a worry as long as he is good enough to cope with top flight cricket.

“Look, if you are playing in an age category, it makes sense. if it’s Under 19, your age should be under 19. But once you play the IPL or play for India, age doesn’t matter.

“A 38-or 40-year-old Virat Kohli is playing, and a 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is also playing. Then, performance matters,” Sehwag said.

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The 2011 World Cup winner also praised India captain Shubman Gill for scoring his second double century in ODIs.

Gill smashed 223 off 133 balls against the West Indies in the second ODI at Guwahati on September 30.

“These days many players are performing really well. One of them is Shubman Gill, who is playing so well. He is also the captain of

India’s Test and ODI sides. He went past Sunil Gavaskar’s record by scoring over 700 runs in England, and recently hit his second double century in ODIs. It is not easy,” he said.

On India’s tour of England in 2025, Gill made 754 runs across five Tests, surpassing Gavaskar’s tally of 732 against the West Indies in the 1978-79 season.

Sehwag said that a strong performance from the bowlers could help India lift the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa.

“Among our fast bowlers, we have Bumrah, who is the best we have. If our bowling attack stays strong in the World Cup, then we can win it very easily,” he concluded.