Vaibhav Suryavanshi, 14, of the Rajasthan Royals, made history by becoming the youngest player to compete in the Indian Premier League (IPL). His batting and grounded demeanour also won hearts. The opener had a fantastic IPL start, scoring 252 runs in just seven games, including a century and a fifty.

Many wondered if the Southpaw was introduced to the competition too soon after being signed by the Royals for INR 1.10 crore. The sceptics were proven wrong by his steady performances. Suryavanshi capped the campaign with a game-winning 57 off 33 balls against Chennai Super Kings, even though the club finished eighth in the table. After the match, the adolescent talked to head coach Rahul Dravid about how he dealt with the attention.

“I turned off the phone, but there were almost 500 missed calls following my century versus GT. After the century, a lot of people came up to me, but I don’t enjoy it. For two to four days, I didn’t use my phone. Having a lot of people around bothers me. In an IPL video, he stated, “It’s enough, just my family and a few friends.”

That natural game is pointless, and I have to maintain my focus: Vaibhav Suryavanshi

Dravid, meanwhile, cautioned the young player to be prepared and to be grounded since the bowlers would be coming back at him hard the following season.

You had a really successful season. Proceed in this manner. Keep up the good work and remember that all of the opposition bowlers you see will return because you’ve performed so well this season. They will arrive more prepared, so we need to put in more effort and get even more ready. You need to keep getting better and learning new things. Therefore, you are a better player when we reunite next season,” Dravid informed Suryavanshi.

When asked what he had learnt from the competition, Suryavanshi attributed his success and ability to rapidly adjust to the top level to his preseason training.

“Sir, it was a fantastic season. It was you, the coaching team, that I practiced under. After three to four months of preparation and practice, the results were evident. Our intense practice helped to make the challenging tasks simpler. I’ve discovered that maintaining attention is essential, that playing naturally is pointless, and that I need to modify my style of play to suit the needs of the squad and help my side win. Additionally, I don’t need to try too hard at this level; I just need to support my abilities and match them with the demands of the team,” the southpaw continued.