Vaibhav Suryavanshi flooded with endorsement offers but Rahul Dravid 'keeping him ground' to avoid Prithvi Shaw fate
Ravi Shastri revealed some interesting details about Vaibhav Suryavanshi during the 2nd India vs England Test match.
As India continued to pressure England in the 2nd Test at Edgbaston, some 32 miles away in Worcester, young Vaibhav Suryavanshi was overshadowing his seniors. As part of the India Under-19 team, Suryavanshi, the youngest of the lot, at just 14, went berserk. Given his knocks of 48 in the first Youth ODI, 45 in the next and 86 in the third, you could just sense that a big one was on the way. And it came, at last, as he blasted his way to a 78-ball 143, an innings studded with 23 boundaries – 10 sixes and 13. The Vaibhav Suryavanshi mania is here. It's his world, and we’re all just part of it. After all, how often does a teenager, a 14-year-old, make as many headlines, if not more, as Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill?
Suryavanshi first made headlines during the IPL auction last year, when he was bought by Rajasthan Royals for ₹1.10 crore, becoming the youngest ever to be picked in the history of the IPL auction. Then, a 13-year-old, Suryavanshi, became 14 by the time he played his first IPL match. He scored 38 but made heads turn by smashing the first ball he faced for a six. The best was yet to come, though. After a few days, Suryavanshi became a household name when RR took on the Gujarat Titans. En route to scoring 101 off 38 balls, Suryavanshi smashed the second-fastest century in IPL history and the youngest ever to do so. Vaibhav Suryavanshi had arrived.
And now, as his popularity level soars, more so with his six-laden century in Worcester, Suryavanshi is on the road to success. Former India coach Ravi Shastri, who, along with Michael Atherton and Dinesh Karthik, was left with no choice but to hijack the India vs England broadcast with the mention of Suryavanshi, revealed that the teenage sensation has already been approached for some lucrative endorsement deals. Shastri, while spreading this information, pointed out that Rahul Dravid, the RR head coach, is keeping a close eye on him to ensure he doesn't let distractions get to him.
{{/usCountry}}And now, as his popularity level soars, more so with his six-laden century in Worcester, Suryavanshi is on the road to success. Former India coach Ravi Shastri, who, along with Michael Atherton and Dinesh Karthik, was left with no choice but to hijack the India vs England broadcast with the mention of Suryavanshi, revealed that the teenage sensation has already been approached for some lucrative endorsement deals. Shastri, while spreading this information, pointed out that Rahul Dravid, the RR head coach, is keeping a close eye on him to ensure he doesn't let distractions get to him.
{{/usCountry}}“In fact, I was speaking to Kumar Sangakkara at the back of the box yesterday and he said he’s been flooded with endorsement offers already, but how he’s handling it is very important. He has got a good bloke in Rahul Dravid there. He’s a mentor, a coach. He is keeping him on the ground. My word, what a talent at 14."
How Vaibhav Suryavanshi can avoid a Prithvi Shaw-like disaster
{{/usCountry}}“In fact, I was speaking to Kumar Sangakkara at the back of the box yesterday and he said he’s been flooded with endorsement offers already, but how he’s handling it is very important. He has got a good bloke in Rahul Dravid there. He’s a mentor, a coach. He is keeping him on the ground. My word, what a talent at 14."
How Vaibhav Suryavanshi can avoid a Prithvi Shaw-like disaster
{{/usCountry}}As Shastri pointed out, for a player like him, playing for India is an eventuality. It is definitely going to happen. It's just a matter of time. But it’s about the other aspects of his life that he needs to be very careful about, such as dealing with social media. Former India batter Shikhar Dhawan recently told The Hindustan Times in an interview that while there is no denying that Suryavanshi is a special, gifted kid, it’s how he tackles fame and money, which eventually comes to him, that will determine and shape his career. In fact, former England captain Atherton touched upon something similar when he mentioned Prithvi Shaw and the downfall that followed him.
"It's not an absolute given, though, is it? I am thinking of the fact that Shubman Gill was obviously an India Under-19 player who has come through, but the captain of that team was Prithvi Shaw, who has played a bit but seems to have drifted to the other side a little bit."
And that's when Shastri referred to the solution. "That’s why at that age it’s very important. You have always found talent in India. At 16, 17, 18. Tendulkar set the benchmark. But it’s where they are at 23, 24, that’s important. A lot of them disappear; hence, handling is every important," he said.
