Cheteshwar Pujara explains why Vaibhav Suryavanshi may not feature in England T20Is immediately

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Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s maiden India call-up has generated tremendous excitement among fans following his sensational rise over the past few months. After dominating IPL 2026 and continuing his outstanding form for India A, the teenage batting prodigy is widely expected to make his international debut during the ongoing five-match T20I series against England. However, former India batter Cheteshwar Pujara believes the youngster may have to wait patiently for his opportunity despite all the hype surrounding him.

Speaking on Star Sports, Pujara felt that India are unlikely to make immediate changes to their settled top order, especially after backing the T20 World Cup-winning combination of Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan. According to him, team management will first look to give the experienced trio an extended run before considering changes. Pujara also urged the young batter to ignore the growing expectations and focus entirely on his cricket rather than outside opinions.

“There is a lot of hype around him, and as a young player, he shouldn’t be focusing on what is being said about him. I think it is important to keep the outside noise away from him, and the best way to do it is to just focus on the game. I don’t think he will get an opportunity straight up. The Indian team would not want to change their top three, and I don’t think Vaibhav will get his opportunity in the first 2 or 3 games. Once the Indian team starts doing well, whenever there is an opportunity in rotation, that is when Vaibhav will come in to the playing XI. What he has done in the IPL, it won’t be easy to replicate the same thing in English conditions,” Pujara said.

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Although Pujara believes the transition will not be easy, Suryavanshi has already produced impressive performances in England at the youth level. During India’s Under-19 tour of England in 2025, the left-handed batter finished as the highest run-scorer in the ODI series, amassing 355 runs at an outstanding average of 71.00 while striking at 174.01.

More recently, the 15-year-old carried his incredible form into the India A setup, smashing a record-breaking 11-ball half-century in the tri-series final in Dambulla before earning his maiden senior India call-up. England captain Harry Brook had also confirmed before the series that the hosts have prepared specific plans for the teenage sensation should he feature during the T20I series.

Also READ: Harry Brook reveals his plan to counter Vaibhav Suryavanshi ahead of the England vs India first T20I