AB de Villiers disagrees with Team India's handling of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi: ‘When will you unleash him?’

However, with Samson now failing for three games in a row, the pressure is firmly on the management to make use of Sooryavanshi's form and make the most of it. The left-hander hammered 776 runs in the IPL 2026 season for the Rajasthan Royals and then backed it up with the fastest List-A fifty.

After Sooryavanshi didn't play against Ireland, India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said the youngster needs to wait for his opportunity, as the management wants to be fair to Samson, considering how he helped the Men in Blue win the T20 World Cup earlier this year. However, de Villiers doesn't agree with the former Netherlands star's assessment of the situation.

Also Read: ‘Vaibhav Sooryavanshi should be at home giving exams and playing gully cricket’: SA great urges Tendulkar guidance

“When will he be unleashed? I thought the Ireland series was the perfect opportunity for him to come in and get a feel for international cricket. It was unfortunate that he never got an opportunity," de Villiers said on his YouTube channel.

"I beg to differ with Ryan Ten Doeschate, saying Suryavanshi has to go through the process like any other player. After the IPL he had, it was time to throw him into the deep end, especially against a lower team like Ireland,” he added.

‘Some work to do’

de Villiers also believes that India have a lot of work to do after their series loss to Ireland. Last week saw Shreyas Iyer getting off to a bad start as the captain as the Men in Blue were blanked 2-0 in the two-match series.

"There is some work to do for Team India. They need to regroup, reset, and find a method to play in the UK. It's not easy under those conditions, where the scores aren't like they are in the IPL. You don't get to the 250s and 260s there. It is more strategic and tactical out there, where sometimes 140 or 160 is enough," said De Villiers.

Earlier this week, the first T20I between India and England was abandoned due to rain and the second match of the five-game series will be played on Saturday, July 4 in Manchester.

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