Lucknow Super Giants coach Justin Langer dropped a soul-shaking compliment on Rajasthan Royals’ 15-year-old prodigy Vaibhav Suryavanshi after seeing his team decimated by the youngster’s 36-ball 94 in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 on Tuesday. Since the start of the season, Suryavanshi has produced some breathtaking knocks, taking on some of the finest bowlers in the game. Yet, the ease with which he has hit sixes against the likes of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Jasprit Bumrah has amazed Langer, so much so that the former Australia batter has started to see Sir Donald Bradman-like adaptability in the youngster.

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Langer admitted that Suryavanshi was the difference-maker as Rajasthan chased down the humongous target of 221 runs set by Lucknow.

“Yeah, well, yeah, ultimately if you scored 90… what’d he get, 94 off 36 balls? Um, and he’s the one who inflicted those… those 73 runs off three overs, a lot of that. So, yes, from that point of view, he was the difference. Um, we got a couple of young bowlers who played today who will learn from the experience. They’ll work out how grounding this game is,” he said.

‘Scary’ Sooryavanshi Has Bradman-Like Adaptability

Langer revealed an intriguing tale from his observation of Suryavanshi’s game. He highlighted how the likes of Mitchell Starc and Anrich Nortje were left clueless when they came across Suryavanshi in the IPL. Langer added that it is “scary” to even think how good the Royals’ young gun will become when he truly learns how to master his craft, especially given that he already holds the Orange Cap as the top run-getter in the IPL this season.

“I was saying that the way he plays, it’s… it’s… it’s quite… it’s quite breathtaking, actually. And you know how I judge it? I think the last game, Mitchell Starc, and who’s one of the all-time great white-ball bowlers, he’s bowling and he’s almost… you look at the expression on his face. And Nortje, who’s a world-class international bowler, and Suryavanshi’s hitting them and they… the expression on their faces is such that, ‘What is happening here?’ So, whilst as an ex-batsman knowing how hard batting is, I think what is going on here? The bowlers are thinking what on earth is going on here? It’s just… it is… it is quite… it’s quite incredible, actually, to be able to play that way and now have the Orange Cap.

“You know, sometimes when players play like that, there’s high risk to it, and yet he’s doing it in every form of the game and scoring a lot of runs. And ultimately, that’s what the game is about. And… and the scary thing is, the best way to learn how to make runs is to make runs, not by hitting some big sixes. And he makes runs over and over and over again. So, the scary thing going forward, if the expressions on the faces of Mitch Starc and Nortje and every bowler tell a story now, what about when he learns how to bat? My gosh, he’s so young,” Langer said.

READ | “Kuch Meaning Nahi Tha”: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s Post-Match Quip Proves He Is 15 

The LSG coach was also asked if Suryavanshi has what it takes to adapt to challenging overseas conditions, like those in England and Australia. He recalled the tour the 15-year-old had Down Under with the India U19 or India A team. Seeing Suryavanshi deliver even in Australia, Langer feels the boy has a Don Bradman-esque ability to adapt.

“People say to me, ‘Would Bradman have made so many runs on… in the days where, you know, there was… you know, they could wear helmets or blah, blah, blah?’ And I say, well, he would have adapted. And… and Suryavanshi is that good, wherever he plays, he’s going to adapt his game because where are they going to bowl to him? Where, honestly, where are they going to bowl to him? So, he’ll adapt. He’ll keep getting better and better, which is scary for world cricket,” Langer concluded.

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