IPL 2026: ‘Second year is going to be a bit tough for him’ – Shikhar Dhawan warns Vaibhav Suryavanshi upcoming IPL season

Shikhar Dhawan, a former India opening batter, gave critical assistance to India’s rising star, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who became the youngest batter to score a century in the Indian Premier League (IPL) this year. The 13-year-old hitter was signed by the Rajasthan Royals (RR) for INR 1.10 crore at the IPL 2025 big auction, making him the youngest player to find a franchise in the lucrative competition. During the IPL, he turned 14 and went on to strike a 35-ball century against the Gujarat Titans, making him an instant star.

Dhawan lauded Suryavanshi for dominating some of the world’s best bowlers with ease. The former also credited the IPL with providing a platform for young people in the country to showcase their abilities to the rest of the world.

“What age is he, 13-14? (Playing in the IPL at the age of 14 is a huge deal). At such a young age, he was striking bowlers and standing in front of the world’s best cricketers. When I see his confidence when hitting big shots, it’s incredible. Thanks to the IPL, our children can now dream of joining a huge team as early as the age of five. Vaibhav realised his dream. He’s there. Many congratulations to him and his family. A truly gratifying moment for all of us in cricket. It’s unfathomable for a 14-year-old youngster to dominate in a huge league like that,” Dhawan told Hindustan Times.

Shikhar Dhawan stated that Suryavanshi’s problem will be to manage his celebrity, attention, and money.

However, the former cricketer stated that he is in excellent hands at the Royals, with Rahul Dravid as head coach and Vikram Rathour as batting coach.

“For him, the challenge will be balancing fame, attention, and money. He was fortunate to be in the capable hands of Rahul Bhai and Vikram Paji, the coaches of the Rajasthan Royals. They are extremely talented cricketers. They believe on producing not only brilliant cricketers, but also decent human beings. “Being a good human being is extremely important,” he added.

How he cares for his mental health will be very crucial. Dhawan believes Suryavanshi will face stronger opposition bowlers in IPL 2026, thus he must prepare appropriately. The 39-year-old also emphasised the necessity of Suryavanshi staying mentally fit for the demands of the sport and controlling his self-expectations to a fine tune.

“I believe that the second year would be difficult for him. Bowlers will understand what his strength is. They’re going to strategise better against him. “He has to face these challenges and grow,” Dhawan stated.

“How he takes care of his mental health will be very important going forward because expectations will rise. The self-expectation will rise as well. How he is gonna handle all that stuff is what I am looking forward to seeing,” he added.

Suryavanshi has been in tremendous form for the India U-19 side, which is currently playing a five-match Youth ODI series in England. The left-handed batter is the leading run-getter in the series, scoring 322 runs from the first four games, averaging 80.50 and striking at 198.77.