Sanjay Manjrekar claimed that while T20 cricket can bring in stardom and financial success, respect still lies in Test cricket, and youngster Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will still have a lot to learn and evolve in order to increase his technical finesse.
Sanjay Manjrekar, the former Indian cricketer, has widely been acknowledged as a critic in India who has not backed down from hurling accusations at cricketers and also blaming them in the context of their stroke play. He has also had several confrontations with some big names in their playing XI.
Sooryavanshi, just 15 years old, has dominated world cricket in recent times and made his debut in the IPL with a terrific century in the last season of the IPL. He has backed his form internationally over the past one year and then scored another century in this IPL career.
“I think he’s done enough,” Sanjay Manjrekar backs Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for a spot in India’s T20I side
In the IPL, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has smashed several cricketers in his campaign against the world-class opposition and their pacers like Jasprit Bumrah, Josh Hazlewood, Kagiso Rabada, and Pat Cummins.
In the under-19 level, he scored a stunning 175 in the World Cup final and has also amassed centuries against all major oppositions across all three formats of the game. He is the youngest ever cricketer in IPL history to have scored two centuries this early in his career. Sanjay Manjrekar has hence lauded the domination of the young cricketer.
“Looking at IPL as a platform to stake a claim for the Indian T20 team, and keeping an eye on his performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy as well, where he has a hundred [vs Maharashtra], I think he’s done enough. If someone is lighting up this stage like this, then he’s ready,” he said on Sportstar’s Insight Edge podcast.
“He might be ready, but…”: Manjrekar’s introspective statement on team India’s selection process
While Sooryavanshi has truly been dominating world cricket with the bat, he has amassed 404 runs across 10 matches and has scored with a strike rate of 237.64 in this edition of the IPL. He has not backed away even against the toughest of oppositions.
“He might be ready, but are the others ready to make way? Because there is a huge crowd for the opening slots in India,” he added. Sanjay Manjrekar’s doubt seems correct, as truly India comprises many such cricketers who are already in the queue for that opening spot.
With Abhishek Sharma having a stunning IPL season and Sanju Samson scoring two centuries as well, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Prabhsimran Singh, Priyansh Arya, and Sai Sudharsan are all putting on a promising show in order to seal that one spot at the top.
“If you want him to earn respect from people,” Manjrekar’s massive advice for young Sooryavanshi
Sanjay Manjrekar further noted that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi belongs to the new age of cricketers who thrive on an aggressive boundary-hitting approach. However, he believes that his approach is a massive drawback for him in the longest format of the game.
“Take consistent T20 batters in recent years; Sooryavanshi stays leg-side and hits a ball on the middle stump through point because he creates that room. In Test cricket, the advice is to get close to the ball. You won’t get runs in England, Australia, or South Africa by staying away from it,” he explained.
While concluding, Sanjay Manjrekar explained that T20 cricket might draw money and attention, but respect truly lies in Test cricket, and that is still the format that makes one a highly regarded cricketer.
“If you want your kid to be famous and rich, T20 batting is for you. If you want him to earn respect from people like us, the critics, then he has to get close to the line of the ball,” he said.
