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England Great Graeme Swann Hails Vaibhav Sooryavanshi: 'Hard to Prepare Against, Almost Unplayable'

Graeme Swann praises Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
Graeme Swann praises Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

 

IIE DIGITAL: India and England will lock horns in the opening T20I at Chester-le-Street on Wednesday with all eyes on whether teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will finally make his international debut! The 15-year-old from Bihar has captured the attention of the cricketing world with his explosive performances in the IPL, Under-19 cricket  and for India A, earning his first call-up to India's T20I squad for the Ireland and England tour. Despite the growing excitement around him, the Shreyas Iyer-led side opted not to play Sooryavanshi in either of the two T20Is against Ireland, a decision that coincided with India's disappointing 0-2 series loss.  Ahead of the first T20I against England, former England spinner Graeme Swann said the hosts will have a tough time planning against young batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. He warned Harry Brook and his team that the teenager's aggressive batting makes him a difficult player to stop. Swann said that while Sooryavanshi is still new to international cricket, he has already spent two seasons in the IPL by giving England enough video footage to study his game. He added that some England bowlers may have even faced him during the IPL.

Despite that, Swann believes Sooryavanshi has been so dominant that no team has found a clear way to stop him. "It's hard to prepare for a player like Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. He is still new to international cricket, but he has already played two IPL seasons. That means there is video footage available. Some of the England bowlers may have bowled to him in the IPL. But the truth is, no one has really had much success against him so far. He has looked almost unplayable," Swann said on Jio-Star.

Swann added that the only England bowler who may have a slight edge over Sooryavanshi is Jofra Archer. Having spent time with the 15-year-old at Rajasthan Royals during the IPL, Archer has seen him closely in training and around the team.

"The one bowler who might have a slight advantage is Jofra Archer. He has seen Sooryavanshi from the dugout, bowled to him in the nets, and watched him closely. He has probably seen more of him than anyone else," Swann said.

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