Fifteen-year-old cricket prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has been turning heads in Indian cricket with his exceptional talent and work ethic, but when the training sessions stop, the teenager turns to a classic source of comfort to unwind: cartoons.

Eternally training

The young batsman from Bihar’s Samastipur has become a massive newsmaker following a sensational run in IPL 2026, where he has scored 680 runs and smashed a record 65 sixes.

His intense schedule means he travels down to Patna five days a week for training, a routine driven by his dedicated father, Sanjiv. However, this relentless dedication makes ordinary rest days difficult to process for the young athlete.

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“All this is because of my father. Since childhood, he has made me practice so much that if I do not practice even for a day, it feels like my life has slowed down a bit. So, I do not need to take a very long break; one day is enough,” Rajasthan Royals (RR) opener Sooryavanshi said during a recent interview with JioStar.

This deep passion for the sport even led him to skip his 10th standard board exams so he could focus strictly on his structured preparation ahead of the IPL. Explaining the pressure and the quick shifts in his career, he noted that he felt a strong urgency to keep training as major tournaments approached.

“I felt I should practice because the IPL was approaching and I was also coming back after playing one-day cricket (U-19 World Cup). There was a change in format too, so I needed to work on certain aspects of my game,” the teenager said.

Childhood and cartoons

Despite his rapid rise and the heavy professional demands on his shoulders, Sooryavanshi still holds onto his childhood innocence, a trait that cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar recently stated he hopes the young player retains forever.

When asked about how he manages to find peace and switch off from the high-stakes world of cricket, the teenager admitted that his favourite mode of entertainment is still watching animated shows. “When I used to stay at home two or three years ago and played matches or practiced there, whenever I had free time at home, I used to watch cartoons, and I really enjoyed it,” he said.

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Even with his newfound fame and the massive spotlight on his historic IPL performance, his routine for relaxation remains completely unchanged. Whenever the pressure builds up or life feels too quiet, he retreats to the comfort of his room to watch his favorite shows.

“Even now, whenever I feel like I need some relaxation or peace, I watch cartoons. I sit comfortably in my room and watch whichever cartoons I like. It feels really nice and reminds me a lot of home,” he added.

Wisdom beyond his years

Sooryavanshi has become the biggest newsmaker in Indian cricket since the arrival of Sachin Tendulkar in 1988, and though their batting styles might be different, just like Tendulkar, Sooryavanshi is mature beyond his years. “If I score 80 instead of a hundred and my team wins, and if we still do not win despite me scoring a century, then that 80 means more to me than the hundred,” he said.

In the IPL 2026 Eliminator against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Sooryavanshi’s innings echoed his sentiment. On the cusp of rewriting the record books, Sooryavanshi needed just three runs for the fastest IPL ton after a breathtaking 28-ball 97. Refusing to trade his natural aggression for personal glory, he looked to clear the boundary one more time, ultimately losing his wicket to finish an unforgettable innings at 97 (29).

Also read: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s 97 powers Rajasthan Royals past SRH into IPL Qualifier 2

In an interview after the innings, Sooryavanshi stated, “I found out about the fastest hundred record only after I got out. At that time, I only wanted to contribute how much I can for the team.”

In an era where personal milestones are heavily celebrated, this refreshing, team-first mindset proves that despite the massive IPL stardom, the 15-year-old sensation has his feet firmly on the ground.