“Agar pehla ball mila to uda denge”: Sanju Samson reveals Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s bold conversation with Rahul Dravid before IPL debut

Sanju Samson on Sunday recalled a fearless conversation between young batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and legendary coach Rahul Dravid ahead of the teenager’s debut in the Indian Premier League last year for Rajasthan Royals.

Sooryavanshi, who was signed by the franchise for ₹1.1 crore, made history in 2025 when he became the youngest-ever IPL debutant during a match against the Lucknow Super Giants.

Fearless Approach That Defined His Rise

The young batter quickly gained attention for his fearless style of batting. His attacking mindset was also a major factor in India’s victory at the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup in 2026.


In the final against the England Under-19 cricket team in Harare, Sooryavanshi produced a sensational performance, smashing a record-breaking 175 runs off just 80 balls.

Conversation with Rahul Dravid Before the Match

During the BCCI Naman Awards, Sooryavanshi shared the stage with Samson, Abhishek Sharma and Hardik Pandya. When he was asked about the memorable six from his debut match, the youngster started narrating the story himself before Samson stepped in to reveal the entire conversation.

“I was actually there in the meeting,” Samson said. “Rahul Sir called him into the room and told me, ‘Sanju, we need to talk to him. He’s a very young kid; we have to explain how to go about it.’”

Samson explained that Dravid then asked the youngster about his approach for the match.

“So Rahul Sir asked him, ‘Vaibhav, what’s the plan?’ Vaibhav replied, ‘Kuch nahi Sir, hum to khelenge (Nothing special, Sir. I’ll just play).’ Rahul Sir asked again, ‘What’s your game plan?’”

“Vaibhav said, ‘Agar hume pehla ball mila to hum pehla hi uda denge’ (If the first ball is in my zone, I’ll hit it in the air). And that’s exactly what he did. He’s playing a video game of his own,” Samson added.

Youngest IPL Centurion

Sooryavanshi later created another historic milestone when he became the youngest centurion in IPL history, scoring 101 runs off just 38 balls against the Gujarat Titans at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

Eye on IPL Glory

The 14-year-old prodigy has also set his sights on helping Rajasthan Royals secure the IPL title in 2026, underlining his ambition to achieve greater success at the highest level.