India, June 19 -- The question around Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was always going to arrive earlier than it should have. That is the burden of being projected as the next great Indian batting prodigy. Once a teenager tears through age-group cricket, earns an India A call-up and starts carrying the noise of a future India player, every innings stops being just an innings. It becomes evidence.

That is why his performances in the A-team tri-series in Sri Lanka need calmer reading.

On paper, Vaibhav has not produced the one defining knock that ends debate. His scores - 14, 44, 21 and 38 - show starts, not domination. He has crossed 20 three times but has not reached fifty. He has repeatedly given India A fast openings but has also repeatedly fail...