Former India batter Mohammad Kaif believes young opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi should have made his international debut during the Ireland series instead of being introduced in England. Kaif feels the 15-year-old would have settled into international cricket better if he had got an opportunity in Ireland first.Sooryavanshi earned his maiden India call-up after an outstanding IPL 2026 season. He was picked for the tours of Ireland and England but did not get a game in Ireland. After Sanju Samson struggled with the bat, the team management handed Sooryavanshi his debut in England. However, the teenager had a difficult start, scoring 14, 13 and 15 in the three T20Is he played before being left out of the fifth and final match.Kaif, who represented India in 13 Tests and 125 ODIs, said Sooryavanshi’s confidence would have been much higher had he been given his debut in Ireland.“Vaibhav is an X-factor player. He made a reputation for himself. His bat did the talking in the IPL despite him being in the spotlight. He didn’t just perform in one or two matches. He won the Orange Cap. He should have played in Ireland; the nervousness would have gone in that case. He would have reached England and performed well,” Kaif said on his YouTube channel.“He was having a rich vein of form behind him; he had won the Orange Cap. But you told him you serve water first. He’s a special player; you could have played him directly in Ireland. He should have gotten special treatment. If he played in Ireland, he would not have had any nervousness in the UK.”Following his three low scores against a star-studded England side, Sooryavanshi was dropped for the fifth and final T20I, with Samson returning to the playing XI.Sooryavanshi responded impressively during the T20I series against Zimbabwe. He began the tour with a half-century in the opening match, scored 20 in the second game and then smashed 81 off 49 balls in the third T20I as India completed a 3-0 series sweep. The left-hander finished with 151 runs in three matches at an average of 50.33 and was named the Player of the Series.Kaif believes the youngster’s international journey was made more difficult than it needed to be.“He didn’t perform well in England; you dropped him. Sooryavanshi was playing against Archer. He hasn’t played in India yet, but I am sure he will score a lot of runs when he plays here. Sooryavanshi’s India journey was tough; it could have been made easier.”“It was made tough for him. He’s a special talent; you shouldn’t have dropped him. You should have played him in Ireland. Now see, against Zimbabwe, he won the Player of the Series award,” Kaif said.