‘I am a wicket-taker’ – Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s cheeky remark after two-wicket over in Duleep Trophy

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi turned heads with the ball during the Duleep Trophy 2026 quarterfinal between East Zone and North East Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence, Bengaluru, on August 23. The 15-year-old left-arm orthodox spinner struck twice in four deliveries, returning career-best figures of 2/11 from three overs as North East Zone were bowled out for 146 in their second innings.

Captain Ishan Kishan handed him the ball as East Zone looked to wrap up the contest, and the teenager responded with a two-wicket burst that underlined his all-round ability in only his ninth first-class game and his maiden Duleep Trophy match.

Sooryavanshi’s two-wicket burst in the second innings

Sooryavanshi’s first wicket came with the second ball of his over when Kishan Lyngdoh, who had made 25, stepped out and attempted to hoick over the leg-side. The spin induced an edge that flew high on the offside and was caught by DP Das after a long run. Three balls later, Imliwati Lemtur edged a front-footed defence through to Ishan Kishan behind the stumps for four, giving Sooryavanshi his third and fourth wickets in first-class cricket.

East Zone had already built a commanding position in the match. They posted 467 in their first innings, with Shahbaz Ahmed contributing 167 and Sudip Kumar Gharami adding 146. North East Zone were bowled out for 111 in reply, handing East Zone a first-innings lead of 356 runs and triggering the follow-on. In the second innings, Anukul Roy claimed 5/37 from 15 overs before Sooryavanshi’s double strike helped seal the result. East Zone won by an innings and 210 runs to advance to the Duleep Trophy 2026 semi-finals.

Sooryavanshi had scored eight off six deliveries, including two boundaries, in East Zone’s only innings, so his bowling contribution carried added significance on the day. He serves as vice-captain of East Zone for this tournament, with Kishan as captain.

Sooryavanshi on bowling and his own self-belief

After the match, Sooryavanshi spoke about being handed the ball and his own assessment of his bowling ability.

“If you ask batters, they always enjoy bowling. A batter bowling or a bowler batting is enjoyable for the player. Wickets weren’t falling for the opposing team. Thus, I was asked to bowl two or three overs. Ishan bhaiya felt like he was taking a risk by giving me the ball. But he doesn’t know that I am a wicket-taker,” Sooryavanshi said in a video released by BCCI.

“In my mind, I only thought that even if I take five wickets, I am only getting three overs to bowl. I tried to bowl as best as I could, in one spot, and to finish my spell. It was a lot of fun because batting didn’t go so well in the last match, so contributing to the team with the ball was fun. When a batter takes a wicket, there is no greater enjoyment than that,” he added.

Sooryavanshi had already made headlines in 2026 before this Duleep Trophy appearance. He became the youngest-ever Indian Test debutant at 15 years and 96 days during the tour of England earlier this year, and also became the youngest cricketer to win an Orange Cap in IPL 2026. He was retained by Rajasthan Royals for Rs 1.1 crore ahead of that IPL season. East Zone’s progress to the semi-finals sets up another first-class outing for the teenager in the near future.