India’s Teen Star Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to Get a Separate Dressing Room in England, Here’s Why

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has barely turned 15, yet he is already rewriting the rulebook of Indian cricket, and not just with his bat.

As India gear up for a high-profile five match T20I series in England , the teenage prodigy will step into uncharted territory: he will use a dressing room of his own , separate from the rest of the senior India squad. The arrangement comes into effect in accordance with ECB safeguarding regulations for players under the age of 16.

It is not a punishment, nor a snub, it is protocol. Sooryavanshi will still be allowed inside the main India dressing room during matches and team talks, but will need to change separately, or alternatively use the shared space at a designated time before his teammates arrive.

The teenager is no stranger to professional dressing rooms, he has already featured for his state side, for Rajasthan Royals in the IPL , and for India A on a recent tour of Sri Lanka. But this is different: an ICC sanctioned tour on English soil, where child protection rules carry the full weight of regulation.

What makes the story irresistible is the record hanging in the balance. Should Sooryavanshi take the field in Belfast or England, he will become India’s youngest ever men’s T20I debutant, eclipsing a mark held for over three decades by none other than Sachin Tendulkar , who was 16 years and 205 days old on his debut.

The itinerary is set: two T20Is against Ireland in Belfast on June 26 and 28, followed by a five match England leg starting in Durham, before India shift focus to the ODIs. Whether the same safeguarding rules apply in Belfast remains, for now, unconfirmed.

For a player who has already conquered IPL bowling attacks with fearless stroke play, this might be the first time the headlines are written before a ball is even bowled.