Sunil Joshi praises Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s explosive fifty, reveals BCCI’s future plan

Stand-in bowling coach Sunil Joshi has heaped praise on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi after the teenager’s sensational debut T20I fifty against Zimbabwe. Joshi said the 17-year-old was sensational and revealed that BCCI plans to develop him as a bowling all-rounder at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.

Sooryavanshi’s 18-ball fifty, laced with four boundaries and as many sixes, made him the youngest player to score a half-century in international cricket. His blitzkrieg reduced India’s chase of 126 to a mere formality as the reigning T20 World Cup champions reached home with 40 balls remaining and take a 1-0 lead.

“I think the first thing is, let’s focus on his batting. He’s been sensational and I’m glad that he has done well. This is a hunting ground for him. He performed well in the U19 World Cup finals here. He had a good performance yesterday as well,” Joshi told reporters in the pre-match press conference, ahead of the second T20I on Saturday.

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Joshi reveals BCCI plan for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s bowling

He also revealed that some work will be put in on Sooryavanshi’s bowling skills at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.

“Vaibhav has been very comfortable with his batting. Whenever we get time in his bowling, I’ll work with him in the CoE. Whenever we will see him bowling well, we’ll definitely and quickly focus on that.“

Addressing comparisons surrounding emerging seam-bowling all-rounder Suryansh Shedge, Joshi urged patience and persistence with young talents adapting to the demands of international T20 cricket.

“Look, we shouldn’t compare. Suryansh is making his place in the Indian team. Hardik (Pandya) has made his place. Shivam (Dube) has also made his place. So, he’s a rising talent. We have to persist with him. He’s working on good things, and good areas. That’s what we want in the T20 format.”

Joshi highlights spin-bowling potential of Abhishek Sharma & Tilak Varma

Joshi also pointed out the spin-bowling capabilities offered by top-order batters like Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma, though they haven’t been used much at the international level.

“I think all three are good bowlers and all-rounders, although Abhishek Sharma has improved a lot.

“The coaches always want him to improve every time for the better and Harsh Dubey has also performed well. We also have Tilak Verma with us. In fact, he’s also another optional bowler. We have conversations with him about not giving too many runs, giving more dot balls, and focusing on the basics. That’s it, very simple and just keep it simple.”

(With IANS Inputs)