Indian T20I captain Shreyas Iyer has heaped praise on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, throwing his weight behind the teenage batting sensation as India gear up for a five-match T20I series against West Indies, starting on October 6. Iyer made it clear that Sooryavanshi remains in the team's plans despite the competition at the top of the order. Iyer asserted that Sooryavanshi’s position behind the familiar openers should not be considered as a sign that the team lacks confidence in him because, as per Iyer, Sooryavanshi’s time will come and he will dominate the Indian cricket. 

"I keep interacting with Vaibhav in terms of what he does outside the field because everyone talks to him about cricket, and we know how talented and gifted an individual he is. So, just talking about his lifestyle outside cricket, that interaction, knowing about his family, what he does, and what excites him more, helps him be more of himself when he talks about it,” Iyer said while talking to JioStar. 

"And a very silent guy, but on the field, is very destructive. So, that's an irony when you look at him. He's a very charming, sweet guy to interact with and good to have around the dressing room. And I know that his time will come, because we have World Cup-winning openers right now, and they deserve the time out there. He's still in the 15, so definitely, when his time comes, he is going to dominate Indian cricket."

Sooryavanshi has been on the rise since taking the IPL 2026 by storm with his fiery batting assault. His sensational performance at the IPL 2026, where he amassed 776 runs, earned him a place in team India. His first outings in Indian colours had modest scores of 14, 13 and 15 against England, but Sooryavanshi made an impeccable return during India's T20I series against Zimbabwe, earning the Player of the Series award after racking up 151 runs. 

Recently, Sooryavanshi was also part of India's victorious campaign at the Asian Games in 2026, where India retained the gold medal after overcoming arch-rivals Pakistan by 19 runs in the final.