Kumar Sangakkara spoke openly on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s biggest weakness, said such a big thing publicly!

15-year-old young sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi is continuously causing havoc while opening for Rajasthan Royals (RR) in IPL 2026. With his fearless and explosive batting, he is giving a stormy start to the team in every match. Although many times he is not able to convert his bright start into a big score, but his impact in the powerplay is such that it decides the direction of the entire innings of Rajasthan Royals.

Abhishek Sharma’s record broken

Vaibhav has performed brilliantly in the 12 matches played so far this season and has scored 486 runs, which includes a brilliant century and two half-centuries. His aggressive style is such that Rajasthan team crosses the 60 mark in the first 6 overs itself, which makes the job very easy for the middle order batsmen. He did something similar in the match against Delhi Capitals also. Vaibhav played a brilliant inning of 46 runs in just 21 balls, due to which Rajasthan had 75 runs on the board for 1 wicket till the end of the power play.

During this innings, this 15 year old opener also created a big history. He has left behind the record of 42 sixes hit by Abhishek Sharma in IPL 2024. Now Vaibhav has become the batsman who has hit the most sixes in this season with 43 sixes. This record has made it clear why Vaibhav has emerged as one of the biggest stars of IPL 2026.

We don’t want a big score, we want its impact.

While talking to the broadcast during the match, Rajasthan Royals head coach Kumar Sangakkara praised this young player. He made it clear that the team is paying more attention to what impact his game is having on the team rather than his big scores.

Sangakkara said, ‘I would like to see such 30 runs any day which puts the opposition team on the back foot, especially the pace at which Vaibhav scores runs. Yes, it is true that he is not able to convert his starts into as big innings as we or he himself wants. But the fact is that they are hitting the ball very well, giving us those stormy starts, and we have 6-7 batsmen who can maintain that pressure and take the partnership forward.

Vaibhav plays with his mind, not just hitting blindly.

According to Sangakkara, Vaibhav’s biggest strength is his absolutely natural approach to the game. He further said, ‘The most exciting thing is how he sees batting. He sees it exactly the way we all should at the age of 15, like a child playing. He loves batting, he can bat for hours in the nets. Apart from this, he also understands the game very well, hence his batting cannot be called just indiscriminate hitting.

How is the preparation for Nets?

Sangakkara also said that he does not burden Vaibhav with technical improvements. He is eager to learn a lot, but I am careful not to talk to him for too long. They just have to go on the field and play openly. Even if we talk, it is mostly about things other than cricket. A few things here and there, but I like to leave them to themselves so that they can enjoy their game.

When it came to preparation in the nets, the former Sri Lankan legend said that the discussion is more about understanding the match conditions than technique. ‘In the nets we talk about what strategies the bowlers can adopt against them. Like short ball or swinging yorker. We also practice it a little, but I just tell them that whatever decision you take, stick to it 100% and play the shot with full confidence.

When Sangakkara was asked whether he was playing the role of a mentor or ‘father-figure’ for Vaibhav, he laughed and said that Vaibhav did not need one. Sangakkara said smilingly, ‘No, not at all, he doesn’t need it at all. He is a much better player than me so he just needs a little guidance, not too much interference.

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