Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has rapidly emerged as one of the brightest young stars in the IPL. He grabbed national attention during his debut IPL season last year at just 14 years of age. The youngster stunned fans and experts alike with fearless strokeplay and went on to register the second-fastest century in the tournament’s history. The explosive batsman has continued his remarkable rise in IPL 2026 as well, producing another century and attacking some of the world’s best bowlers with complete confidence, skyrocketing his stardom. 

However, Sooryavanshi's inspirational journey might have unintentionally fuelled unhealthy expectations among some aspiring young cricketers and parents. A video widely shared on social media has sparked concern after showing a young boy, reportedly 10 years old, being pushed to face senior bowlers. Check it out:

Dude... pic.twitter.com/6jFmNfrPSN

— Haydos🛡️ (@GovindIstOdraza) May 13, 2026

Viral Nets Video Draws Strong Reactions Online

According to captions accompanying the clip, the man seen encouraging the child is allegedly his father. In the video, the boy can be heard resisting while being prepared for batting practice.

Despite the boy’s repeated objections, the video appears to show him being padded up and then being sent into the nets.

There were no further visuals showing how the session unfolded or whether the child eventually faced the bowlers. However, the footage quickly went viral and generated intense debate across social media platforms.

Social Media Users Raise Safety Concerns

Many online users criticised the incident and expressed concern over the physical and emotional pressure young children may face in competitive sport.

Here are a few of such reactions:

this is dumb! if the kid is litterly crying may b not push him this far, n looks like if he is afraid he doesnt like cricket really. let him be man. if u r reading,let your son do whatever he wants

— Kalāntāk (@Kalantak_art) May 14, 2026

If that doesn't come from within its futile to force a kid into this, suryavanshi is rarest of rare case.

— TinTin69 (@KingDop15813815) May 13, 2026

Learning is process need to get into it step by step

— Preethamvarma (@Preethamvarma14) May 14, 2026

However, there were also others who felt the youngster would need to show greater courage if he hopes to build a future in cricket.

Call me backward minded or anything but I think it's how you develop a child mind and ability abhi se hi dheere dheere darr khtm kr reha hai .And he isn't his dad at that time he is his coach and coach should be strict.Its not vaibhav effect even before they used to do it

— Subham (@Nonedddff) May 13, 2026

I would have just went and played even without gears if my dad joined me for cricket coaching at his age, kids have become softies these days

— AssetAlpha (@AssetAlphaa) May 13, 2026

While Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s rise continues to inspire a new generation of cricketers, the viral video has also reignited conversations around responsible coaching, parental pressure and the importance of ensuring children enjoy the game in a safe environment.