Vaibhav Sooryavanshi with Pakistan Player. Image Credits: AFP/X
IPL 2026 has been Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's own tournament. The rise of the young Rajasthan Royals batter has amazed the cricketing community and the fans equally. Sooryavanshi, who broke multiple records via his blitzkrieg innings this season, has been the talk of the town, with cricket pundits even suggesting an India national call-up for him in the T20 side.
While Sooryavanshi has impressed everyone, whether he can make it to the top or not remains a question for the selectors and the Indian think tank. However, former Pakistan cricketer and former Pakistan Under-19 national coach Mohammad Yousuf has now compared Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to his Pakistan counterpart, with a special mention of a Pakistan legend.
Vaibhav's Unforgettable IPL 2026 Season
For the unaware, Vaibhav has completely rewritten the Indian Premier League record books. As an opener for RR, the young sensation hit the most sixes in a single IPL season, smashing 65 sixes and shattering Chris Gayle's 14-year-old record of 59 sixes.
He also has the most sixes in any T20 tournament and was also the fastest to reach 50 IPL sixes. Along with a handful of six-hitting records, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi also became the youngest player to sign an IPL contract and the youngest player to debut in IPL history.
With multiple feats behind him, the aggressor has now turned his eyes towards the national setup, where even India captain Suryakumar Yadav has lauded him and hinted at his potential inclusion in the coming days.
While Sooryavanshi is collecting and basking in massive praise from the cricketing world, Mohammad Yousuf, a Pakistan veteran who had a record-breaking calendar year in 2006 during his playing days, has now compared him to another Pakistan legend, Shahid Afridi.
Shahid Afridi vs Vaibhav Sooryavanshi?
Taking to his official social media handle on X, Mohammad Yousuf praised Sooryavanshi while comparing him to a young Shahid Afridi, who was fearless, explosive, and full of energy.
As Mohammad Yousuf praised him as the future of cricket, Sooryavanshi's comparison with Shahid Afridi seemed uncanny to multiple netizens, who commented under Yousuf's post.
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Who Is Better At The Young Age?
Like Sooryavanshi, Shahid Afridi started his national career at a very young age of 16. His debut match was in the ODI format against Kenya on October 2, 1996. Within one year of his debut, Shahid Afridi became one of the prominent all-rounders of the national team.
Against Australia, he played four matches across formats, taking five wickets but maintaining a poor batting average of 18. Comparatively, Shahid Afridi was not as impactful as Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in terms of power-hitting during his early years, although he later became known as one of the most destructive batters of his generation.
From the 56 matches Shahid Afridi played across formats between the ages of 16 and 17, he scored 1,239 runs at an average of 24.29 while picking up 37 wickets. While Afridi is no match for Vaibhav during their respective debut years, because of Vaibhav's massive tally in IPL 2026, it is also true that the calibre of Sooryavanshi and Afridi cannot be compared on the same level,
Afridi played international cricket and was an all-rounder rather than a premier opening batter, which Sooryavanshi is for the RR in present day.
RR Look Forward To Sooryavanshi For Qualifier 2
Nevertheless, as Rajasthan Royals look forward to their Qualifier 2 match against Gujarat Titans, a large portion of responsibility will rest upon Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to carry his team in the powerplay with the bat, as he has done throughout the tournament.
If Rajasthan Royals manage to defeat Gujarat Titans on May 29, it will secure them a place in the IPL 2026 final, where Royal Challengers Bengaluru are already waiting to face the Pink Royals on May 31.
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