Why Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will be using a different dressing room than his teammates on England tour

Eyes are set on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as India take on Ireland and England for separate white-ball series during the UK tour. Sooryavanshi has been named in squads for both the Ireland and England T20Is as fans wait in anticipation for his record debut.

The 15-year-old has been setting the stage alight in the Indian Premier League 2026 and for the non-senior India sides during his glittering start to his career. He is now the talk of the town and if he makes his debut in the Ireland or England T20Is, he will break the record of the youngest Indian male debutant in international cricket.

Sooryavanshi meanwhile will be using a different dressing room during the England T20Is, a Cricinfo report said. Sooryavanshi will be allowed in the India dressing room during matches and team talks, but will have to be in a separate one when the side moves to the five venues across England for the five games to be played between July 1 to 11.

This is in accordance with ICC and ECB safeguarding regulations for players under the age of 16 years. But whether the same rules will be applicable for the two-match series against Ireland or not is not known.

“It is an ICC event and they have safeguarding procedures in place because they have jurisdiction,” the Guardian quoted the ECB as saying. “If a safeguarding concern arises during the event the ICC may address it. In addition to this, the ECB Safe Hands policy is always in effect.

“The Cricket Regulator is working with the Team Liaison Officer (TLO) for the Indian team on the requirements and expectations of the player while he’s in the UK. Each County Safeguarding Officer for the relevant cricket venue is also working closely with the Team Liaison Officer to ensure venue protocols and arrangements are understood and followed. This is done by safeguarding risk assessments.

Sooryavanshi’s parents will accompany him on the tour and will be staying with him at the team hotel, a special permission due to his age. We know that the player’s parents will accompany him at all times. They are staying in the same hotel, not the usual arrangement but agreed to in this instance because of his age. The additional measure gives us further confidence that he has family members who can provide the extra level of support and care," it added.

Earlier, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia had said that his parents will be accompanying the teenage sensation for the Ireland and England tours. “So to make him comfortable and help him get used to an adult environment where all the other players are above 18 years of age and the team management members are also adults, we felt it would be helpful,” Saikia had said. “We are doing this because we think this will solve a lot of problems with Vaibhav.

India have reached the UK for their white-ball tour. They will be facing Ireland in two T20Is on June 26 and 28 in Belfast. They will then head to England for five T20Is and three ODIs. The T20Is will begin on July 1 with Chester-le-Street hosting the opener, followed by contests on July 4 (Manchester), July 7 (Nottingham), July 9 (Bristol) and July 11 (Southampton).