Rahul Dravid wants Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to grow beyond T20s as Test cricket fights on: ‘We need players like him’

Rahul Dravid urged patience with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, stressing the need to develop his red-ball game and backing him for a future in Test cricket.

Rahul Dravid has urged patience with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as the 15-year-old prepares for a crucial phase in his development, stressing that the youngster must be allowed to grow as a red-ball cricketer even as his explosive white-ball performances continue to attract attention. Sooryavanshi has already made an extraordinary impression in limited-overs cricket, most notably through his performances in the IPL. But with the teenager now turning his attention towards the domestic red-ball season, Dravid believes striking the right balance between formats will be critical.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Rahuld Dravid for the Rajasthan Royals. (X Images)

“I think you always have to find that balance. And I think it's a great thing that Vaibhav is getting the experience of playing some white-ball cricket through the IPL in India, but he's also having the time to go back and play red-ball cricket in the Indian domestic system and grow his red-ball career,” Dravid told ESPNcricinfo at an ETPL event in Dublin. “All of us also want to see Test cricket survive, all of us want to see Test cricket grow, and we need players like him to be able to hopefully play all formats of the game.”

Dravid calls for patience with Sooryavanshi

Sooryavanshi's next challenge comes in the Duleep Trophy, where he will represent East Zone as the domestic season gets underway. The tournament offers him something he has had relatively little of so far — continuity in first-class cricket. The youngster has played only eight first-class matches and averages 17.25 in the format. His previous red-ball appearances have come amid a packed schedule involving age-group cricket and his rapid rise through the white-ball ranks.

Dravid, who worked closely with Sooryavanshi as Rajasthan Royals coach during IPL 2025, believes that makes the upcoming stretch of red-ball cricket particularly important. “The good thing is he's going to take some time, he's going to need some experience, he's going to get an opportunity to play a lot of red-ball cricket,” Dravid said. “He's not played as much red-ball cricket as probably white-ball cricket. He's only 15, and I think you've got to just give him some time and you've got to be patient with him. He's obviously been such a success straightaway, right, but he's going to go through his ups and downs, and I think people are going to have to be patient with him.”

The Duleep Trophy should provide Sooryavanshi with at least two consecutive red-ball matches if East Zone progress through the competition, with further first-class opportunities potentially available thereafter.

Dravid warned against expecting the teenager's remarkable white-ball success to translate immediately into the longer format. “I think he's going to have some success but he also might have periods where it probably doesn't work out well for him,” he said. “But let's all remember he's only 15 and he has a long way to go. So Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, by not playing in T20 competitions all over the world, is actually playing in the red-ball Indian domestic competition. He's growing, he's getting better at red-ball skills.”

For Dravid, that development could ultimately have implications far beyond domestic cricket. “Hopefully, someday, if he does well and performs well like he has in white-ball cricket, he might become a red-ball player for India. And how exciting that would be for the world game as well.”