IPL 2026: ‘Haven’t seen talent like Vaibhav across last 40 years’ RR assistant coach

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi during RR’s practice session on Saturday. Pics/Ashish Raje

Rajasthan Royals (RR) assistant coach Trevor Penney reckons his team's teenaged batting star Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, 15, is a ‘rare' talent he hasn't seen in 40 years. Today, Sooryavanshi will play his first game at the iconic Wankhede Stadium vs Mumbai Indians (MI), and Penney hopes the attacking RR opener will live up to his reputation against the five-time champions.

"I'm sure he's [Sooryavanshi] very excited. We don't have to talk to him much. He's such a pleasant boy, very confident, and just so excited every day to go out and play and practice. He's just in his little bubble, practises hard, and when he goes out to play, he just enjoys himself. So, it's pretty rare [talent]. I've been in cricket for 40 years and haven't seen that before. So, long may that last, and I certainly hope that it works tomorrow [Sunday]," Penney said during the pre-match press conference on Saturday.

Trevor Penney

Sooryavanshi has scored 579 runs in 13 games in IPL-19, including one century and three half-centuries. The strokeful left-hander has smashed 53 sixes and 50 fours in only his second IPL season.

When asked if Sooryavanshi's fielding and running between the wickets are a concern, given he's mostly used as an Impact Substitute, Penney said: "He's a very good fielder. He's got great hands, moves well, dives, anticipates... he's got all that. Sometimes, with him opening the batting, him going in fresh in the second innings has worked for us. So, there's no specific reason like, oh, he's a bad fielder [and] we're not playing him in the field. It has nothing to do with that. It's just circumstances. He's very good at running between the wickets. But he doesn't really have to run between the wickets too much, does he? It's just about a break. I think he can if he has to."