Vaibhav Suryavanshi U19 World Cup Stint "Detrimental To His Growth": Ex-India Coach
Vaibhav Suryavanshi was dismissed for just 2 runs in the U19 World Cup opener between India and the USA.
14-year-old prodigy, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, failed to fire on his maiden U19 World Cup outing, scoring just 2 runs off 4 balls as India took on USA in their opening match on Thursday. Suryavanshi, despite his age, has shown incredible promise with the bat. The young opening batter has made several age-group records his own in a short period of time and is already a recognised face in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Yet, former Indian women's team coach, WV Raman, feels it was too early to put Suryavanshi in the Under-19 team.
The BCCI limits U19 World Cup appearances for his players to one, which means Suryavanshi would not be able to feature in another showpiece event at this level. Yet, the board felt it was the right time to throw him in the mix, hoping to see the exposure fast-track his development as a batter. Raman, however, isn't a fan of the idea.
"This could be an unpopular opinion. #Suryavanshi has performed extremely well in the A series and the IPL. Making him play at the U-19 level is likely to be detrimental to his growth. He may win matches no doubt, but it should always be about the big picture," WV Raman wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
This could be an unpopular opinion. #Suryavanshi has performed extremely well in the A series and the IPL. Making him play at the U-19 level is likely to be detrimental to his growth. He may win matches no doubt, but it should be always be about the big picture! #indiancricket
— WV Raman (@wvraman) January 15, 2026
While Suryavanshi failed to make his presence count in the U19 World Cup opener against USA, pace bowler Henil Patel emerged as the match-winner. He finished with figures of 5/16 from seven overs with one maiden, ripping through the USA middle-order after India opted to bowl under overcast conditions. The USA were bundled out for a meagre 107 in 35.2 overs.
India's target was revised to 96 in 37 overs after rain interrupted proceedings with the total reading 21 for one in four overs.
Abhigyan Kundu (42 not out off 41 balls) then saw the team home with 118 balls to spare under the DLS method.
With PTI Inputs
India U19