Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 'Concern' Sent To BCCI. Sanjay Manjrekar Cites Rohit Sharma, Inzamam Examples

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar shared his views on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's development in the ongoing IPL season. The 15-year-old batting prodigy has taken the cricketing world by storm with his explosive performances and played a key role in Rajasthan Royals' qualification for the IPL 2026 Playoffs. With 583 runs in 14 matches, he is among the leading run-scorers of the season. However, amid his rapid rise, concerns have been raised over his overall development, particularly in the field. Due to the Impact Player rule, Sooryavanshi has rarely been required to field, a trend that has concerned Manjrekar.

Speaking on Sportstar's Inside Edge podcast, Manjrekar highlighted how the rule may hinder a player's all-round growth. He drew parallels with Rohit Sharma, noting how he primarily contributes as a batter and spends limited time on the field during Mumbai Indians' bowling. 

"I was just thinking about this when I saw Rohit Sharma in the last game. He scored 22 runs off 15 balls. His entire contribution lasted 15 deliveries, yet he'll still receive the full match fee or whatever comes with it. I'm not someone who likes focusing too much on money, but when there's easy money to be made for very little effort, you have to start questioning that model. That can never be a sustainable, long-term formula for success," said Manjrekar.

"The more I think about it, the more I feel we need to do away with the Impact Player rule for this very reason. Is that really what we want to see about Vaibhav Sooryavanshi? To only see one side of his game? A cricketer should be someone who contributes across disciplines. Earlier, we admired players like Inzamam-ul-Haq not just for their batting, but because we also saw the other side of them in the field. That helped you properly assess and understand the player," he added.

Expressing his apprehensions about the Impact Player rule, brought in by the BCCI in the IPL, Manjrekar urged the board to do away with the rule as it could hurt the development of players like Sooryavanshi.

Manjrekar added that while Sooryavanshi's batting continues to improve, his fielding limitations risk being overlooked.

"India won the last two T20 World Cups despite the Impact Player rule. Yes, someone like Shivam Dube can contribute without bowling and still help the team succeed. Those things are happening. But for me, a cricketer shouldn't just walk in, play a quick cameo, and then sit back and relax," he said.

"I want the game to test players more thoroughly. If someone is a good bowler, I don't just want to see him bowl four overs. I want to see how he fields as well. The game should examine every aspect of a player, not just one skill in isolation," he added.

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Topics mentioned in this article

Rajasthan Royals Mumbai Indians Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Sanjay Manjrekar Rohit Sharma IPL 2026 Cricket