Vaibhav Suryavanshi was not around to witness the 2009 Indian Premier League (IPL) match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Deccan Chargers. He wouldn’t be born for another 22 months. Rahul Dravid, though, was very much around — not just as a witness, but as a participant. Except, that game was never about him.
114 matches after Brendon McCullum became IPL’s maiden centurion, in the inaugural game itself, the league — still in its infancy — had its first Indian centurion. It laid the foundation for what later became IPL’s leitmotif – a breeding ground for unadulterated, uninhibited talent – for, in a league comprising the Rahul Dravids and Sachin Tendulkars and Sourav Gangulys, the maiden Indian centurion happened to be an uncapped 19-year-old: Manish Pandey.
Fifteen years on, Pandey remains a part of the IPL landscape, though the spark of early promise never quite ignited into lasting greatness. He would go on to play 68 matches for India, none of them being in whites, and would score a solitary century. He would never score another IPL century. As a footnote of fate, one of his RCB teammates from that 2009 season — then a lower-order floater behind Pandey in the pecking order — would go on to script history as among the finest batters of the game. A certain Virat Kohli.
A year before Pandey’s century, another of Dravid’s teammates — and Kohli’s compatriot from the U-19 World Cup triumph — Shreevats Goswami, had claimed the inaugural Emerging Player award. He would never go on to play for India at the senior level. Then there’s Prithvi Shaw, captain of Dravid’s 2018 U-19 team, once heralded as the next Tendulkar. At 25, he now finds himself without an IPL contract.
The Challenges of Being a Teen Prodigy
Perhaps owing to this trail of prodigious beginnings and unfulfilled arcs, Dravid was cautious in his celebration when Vaibhav Suryavanshi did the most remarkable thing this tournament has seen in years – scoring a century at just 14 years of age. Or perhaps, was it just Dravid being Dravid, that is, stoic?
The former, it became evident, when Dravid arrived for the Star Sports Press Room. Following a barrage of questions on Suryavanshi, Dravid, resigned to his fate, stated:
It is going to be challenging for Vaibhav. Ideally, I’d love to say we shouldn’t shower him with so much attention and focus — but maybe that’s unrealistic, because it’s probably not going to happen. What we can do instead is put a support system around him and help him navigate all of this as best as he can. I mean, just looking around this press room — all the questions have been about Vaibhav, right? So, what can you do? I can’t exactly ask you not to ask about him.Rahul Dravid
Crucial for Vaibhav to Not Get Caught up in the Noise
Dravid’s aware enough not to impose restrictions, whilst reminding the media about their responsibilities.
The media has a role to play here — in how you write about not just success but also setbacks. Cricket is a game where failure is part of the journey. Let’s be honest, Vaibhav will have his downs as well, and I hope we can all keep that in perspective. He’s still a young man, finding his way.Rahul Dravid
He follows it up with a quiet acknowledgement of the inevitable:
I don’t think we’re going to be able to completely shield him from everything happening around him. A lot of it — the noise, the attention — is beyond his or our control. We can’t dictate how much people will talk about him or what the media will write. What we can do is create a support system around him, help him navigate all this attention, and still allow him the space to just be a youngster. That’s important. But this is also part of being a cricketer in this country — learning how to handle the scrutiny. You can't completely distance yourself from it, but you also shouldn’t get completely caught up in it either. Finding that happy medium is key.Rahul Dravid
At the centre of this growing frenzy, Dravid sees a fearless boy who knows little beyond his bat and his boundless love for the game. History teaches us all about the perils of premature comparisons with legends. Accordingly, despite Brian Lara himself applauding the kid, Dravid encourages fans to avert proclamation.
He’ll have to keep working hard on his game, keep developing. He’s got time. No one should be in any rush to proclaim him as something he’s not. He is what he is — an exceptionally talented young player, working really hard, with some great skills and abilities. But he’ll have to keep improving. Teams will get smarter against him. He’s going to go through his ups and downs — that’s just the nature of this T20 format. There’ll be games where it won’t work out. What’s really important is that we allow him to express himself as a young man. And sure, as he keeps doing that, he’ll learn lessons, make mistakes, refine himself, and grow. For now, it’s really about enjoying the game, soaking it all in, and having fun.Rahul Dravid
No One Deserves More Credit for Vaibhav’s Success Than the Kid Himself
Suryavanshi may have credited Rahul Dravid for his meteoric rise, but the former India coach insists the gratitude is misplaced.
I know that whenever a youngster does well in this environment, the Rahul Dravid question inevitably comes up — and the poor kid has to give a diplomatic answer. But it would be wrong of me to just take credit for him. Firstly, the biggest credit goes to him — as a young man, to do what he did. His father has played a significant role in supporting and guiding him. Here at Rajasthan Royals, there are so many people who’ve been involved — Vikram (Rathour), Zubin (Barucha), Sairaj (Bahutule), Bondy (Shane Bond), and other coaches — all of whom have supported and helped him.Rahul Dravid
The Royals Chapter
As for the role Rajasthan Royals’ management has played in his development, Dravid believes the most integral aspect of it has been integrating a shy teenager in a team packed with stars in the likes of Sanju Samson and Jofra Archer.
One of the things we’ve really tried to do is make him feel integrated into this environment. After the auction, we had three or four short-duration camps almost every month leading into the tournament, and Vaibhav was there at every single one — getting to know the players, the support staff, and the coaches. He’s a shy boy, and of course, he takes some time to open up. But I think he’s very comfortable here now. At no stage does he seem intimidated or like he’s holding back. So yes, there’s definitely been an effort to ensure he feels settled and at ease within the group.Rahul Dravid
Having made his debut for Bihar at barely 12, before representing India at the U-19 level, Suryavanshi had long been on the Royals’ radar.
Dravid explains:
I had heard about him through the Under-19 and NCA system. He was already playing for the India Under-19 team even before the auction, so his name was definitely doing the rounds. He was recognized as someone with a fair bit of talent. For almost a year, people had been talking about him.Rahul Dravid
Elaborating on the journey so far, he says:
We saw him during our trials — he came in right at the end, only for a day — but we were very impressed with what we saw. We could see there was potential. That gave us the confidence to pick him. After the auction, we used those few months to help him grow as a cricketer, give him the quality of practice needed to play at this level, and integrate him into the system gradually. We didn’t want to push him in straight away — just gave it time. Then, when the opportunity came with Sanju’s injury, we were confident. You can’t always predict how well someone will do, but we knew he’d worked really hard, practised well, and got used to the IPL atmosphere. He was comfortable around the team and senior players, so we felt ready to give him a go. And we’re glad he started well.Rahul Dravid
What Makes Vaibhav Suryavanshi Special?
On being asked about what makes Suryavanshi such a special talent, Dravid explains a combination of factors being at play, the first of them being purely technical.
I think he’s got really good bat speed. He’s obviously got a high backlift — that’s pretty evident. But what really stood out to me was his hand-eye coordination and judgment of length. That’s something that’s amazed me. When you look at a good young batsman, you ask: how quickly does he pick up length? And with Vaibhav, that’s something you immediately notice — he’s very quick to react to anything fractionally short or really full. I think that combination — the high back lift, the ability to judge length quickly — gives him that power. And of course, he seems to have a natural strength, which helps a lot in situations like this.Rahul Dravid
And then, the mental side of things:
He has the ability to play with that level of fearlessness — to not get phased by the occasion or what’s happening around him. I think that’s truly special. You don’t often see that in someone so young.Rahul Dravid
Learn From History. Celebrate Responsibly.
Suryavanshi, albeit for justified reasons, has drawn parallels with the greats. Articles about Tendulkar’s century against Gujarat at the age of 15, or headlines calling him Lara 2.0, are doing rounds.
There are, however, enough deterrents. Unmukt Chand, U-19 World Cup-winning captain, had recalled how he was termed the next Sachin at 16, when instead, he was not ready for even domestic cricket. Michelle Wie West, who became the youngest player to qualify for a USGA amateur championship at 10, before turning professional at 15, had described how she “stopped enjoying the game because every mistake became a headline.”
This is precisely the pitfall Dravid is determined to shield Suryavanshi from.
He concludes by saying:
There is one thing I would really like to stress about. I don’t want anyone to think Vaibhav is a finished article. He has got a lot to learn, and a lot to improve. There is a long way to go. It would be wrong for anyone to assume he is a finished product.Rahul Dravid