‘Don’t try to change it’ - Clive Lloyd backs Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s fearless approach, urges coaches not to change him

Former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd has heaped praise on teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, backing the youngster to enjoy a long and successful career if he continues to play with the same fearless approach that has brought him success so far.

Lloyd’s opinion carries significant weight in the cricketing world. The legendary batter captained the West Indies to consecutive World Cup triumphs in 1975 and 1979 and led an era dominated by some of the greatest fast bowlers the game has ever seen.

When asked how Sooryavanshi would have fared against those legendary West Indian quicks, Lloyd suggested it would have been a fascinating contest.

“Well, he would have had a very good test (laughs), and we would be testing his character, his skills, and so on. Yes, he is [agrees with that he is a very good player]. He has good eyesight. He is a good striker of the ball. Yeah, so it would be a good test for him and a good test for our bowlers. The point about the bowlers that we had, why it was difficult to decipher what they were doing, because they all did something different. They didn’t do the same thing. So, it would have been a great test,” he said in an exclusive interview with RevSportz.

While acknowledging the challenges Sooryavanshi would have faced against the famed West Indies pace battery, Lloyd made it clear that the teenager possesses immense talent and should be allowed to develop naturally.

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“I think this guy’s got ability, and I’m sure that if he continues to play in the manner that he is playing, and that they don’t try to change it, you know, his style of play, I think we have a young man that we will be watching for quite a long while,” he added.

Lloyd’s comments come on the back of another sensational performance from the young Indian batter. Representing India A in the final of the Tri-Nation 50-over tournament against Sri Lanka A in Dambulla, Sooryavanshi produced a breathtaking innings that left the opposition bowlers searching for answers.

The left-hander smashed the fastest fifty in List A cricket history, reaching the landmark in just 11 deliveries and setting a new world record. The teenage prodigy is now expected to travel to Ireland for India’s upcoming T20I series later this month.