“His fearless approach is different” – Suresh Raina backs Vaibhav Suryvanshi to make his T20I debut before CSK star batter

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) legend Suresh Raina has lauded Rajasthan Royals (RR) batting prodigy Vaibhav Suryavanshi to break into India’s T20I side sooner rather than later. The cricketer-turned-analyst called him an X-factor while reminiscing about his century against the Gujarat Titans (GT) in the IPL and his ton for the U19 team in England.

Raina placed the 14-year-old in the same bracket as Rishabh Pant and Rinku Singh, calling him a once-in-a-generation player. The 38-year-old also lauded Ayush Mhatre for grabbing the opportunity with both hands at the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in IPL 2025.

Suresh Raina told Shubhankar Mishra’s YouTube channel on Friday (August 29):

“42:18 – (Who will first make it to the Indian team - Vaibhav or Mhatre)- Vaibhav Suryavanshi. His fearless approach is different. Mhatre is also good, but Vaibhav has X-factor; such talents are rare. He recently scored a ton in England and scored a century in the IPL. It shows this player from Bihar proves – ek Bihari sab pe bhari (One from Bihar is heavier than all)… Nobody knew Samastipur… A player from a village showed his potential.”

“There was a coach from Bihar who told me that he looked after him. Such players come once in a century, whether it’s Rishabh Pant, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, or Rinku Singh… Ayush Mhtare, at the age of 17, right from the very first match [for CSK], whatever he has done [has been impressive],” he added.

Vaibhav Suryavanshi won the Super Striker of the Season award in IPL 2025. The youngster smashed 252 runs in seven innings at a stunning strike rate of 206.55, including a century and one fifty. He slammed 101 off 38 balls against the Titans at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur in the 47th game of the season. The knock came even as GT had quality bowlers like Mohammed Siraj, Ishant Sharma, Washington Sundar, Prasidh Krishna, and Rashid Khan in their ranks.

The Bihar-born batter recently smashed a quickfire 143 off 78 balls against England’s U19 team during a youth ODI series in Worcester. He finished as the leading run-getter in the five-match series with 355 runs, averaging 71.

On the other hand, Ayush Mhatre scored 240 runs in seven innings at a strike rate of 188.97 for the Super Kings in IPL 2025. The CSK youngster slammed 94 off 48 balls against eventual winners Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the 52nd game of the season.

The Mumbai batter recently slammed 102 & 32 and 80 & 126 in Beckenham and Chelmsford, respectively, while leading India in the two youth Tests against England’s U19 team.

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“Class, temperament and game awareness” – CSK legend backs KL Rahul to make his T20I comeback despite 2025 Asia Cup snub

Suresh Raina further backed KL Rahul to make his T20I comeback despite missing out on a place in the 2025 Asia Cup. Commending him for his class, temperament, and game awareness, the former Indian cricketer said in the same video:

“54:08- (On KL Rahul’s chances in T20Is) He scored the runs. See, KL Rahul has a temperament. People think 20-20 is a very fast game; you need to hit a lot of shots, but the class, temperament, and game awareness he possesses don’t come overnight. He has worked a lot, so I think he will come back.”

KL Rahul amassed 539 runs in 13 innings at a strike rate of 149.72 for Delhi Capitals (DC) in IPL 2025, including one century and three 50s. The 33-year-old also completed the fastest 5,000 runs in the T20 league earlier this year. Overall, the right-handed batter has amassed 5,222 runs in 145 matches in IPL, striking at 136.02, including five centuries and 40 half-centuries.

In T20Is, Rahul has 2,265 runs in 72 matches at a strike rate of 139.12, including two tons and 22 fifties. His last T20I came against England in the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final.