Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson feels that his 13-year-old teammate Vaibhav Suryavanshi is ready for the IPL.
The Royals caused a stir at the IPL 2025 auction by selecting Suryavanshi, who will turn only 14 over the course of the upcoming edition. Despite the confusion around his actual age, he almost certainly became the youngest to get an IPL contract by some distance.
Suryavanshi has already impressed in a “Test” against the Australia Under-19s as well as in the Under-19 Asia Cup and in Indian domestic cricket.
Samson: Suryavanshi might play for India soon
His Royals captain Samson, too, is reasonably impressed with the youngster. “He looks ready. I think it's all about keeping him in the best shape and in a relaxed environment, which RR is known for, and then back him,” Samson told in an interview with JioStar.
“You never know, in a couple of years he might end up playing for India as well. I feel that he is ready to play the IPL and ready to give a few punches here and there.”
Of all IPL captains in 2021, Samson is the only one who will lead the same franchise in 2025. Despite his seniority, however, he is unlikely to advise the teenager: “I don’t like to go and give advice. My way of approaching a young guy is to sit back and observe what he likes, how he wants to play his cricket and ask him what kind of support he wants from me. And then I work my way around it.
“But he looks very confident. He was sitting sixes out of the ground in the academy. So what else can I do? I think it’s all about understanding his strength, backing it and being around as an elder brother.”
Samson: Letting go of Buttler was challenging
Samson also spoke in detail about releasing Jos Buttler ahead of the 2025 edition: “Jos Buttler is one of my closest friends. We played together for seven years. During this time, our batting partnership time itself is so long that we got to know each other so well. He has been like an elder brother to me. Whenever I had a doubt, I would talk to him. When I became captain [in 2021], he was my vice-captain and helped me become a good captain.
“Letting him go has been one of the most challenging decisions for me. During the England series, I told him over dinner that I was still not over it. If I could change one thing in the IPL, I would change the rule of releasing players every three years. While it has its positives, on a personal level, you lose that connect, that relation you built over years. He was a part of the family. What more can I say?”
One man Samson is looking forward to is Rahul Dravid, who was the Royals captain when Samson debuted for them. Dravid will work with the franchise as mentor for two seasons: “Rahul sir was the one who spotted me from the trials. He came up to me and said, ‘Can you play for my team?’
“From there to now, with me being the captain of the franchise and he coming back – I’m very grateful, as we all are in the franchise, to have Rahul sir back. I have played under him [at RR] as a player when he was the captain and I have played under him in the Indian team when he was the coach. But a captain-coach relationship is very special and I'm very much looking forward to learning a lot from him.”
