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Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Question to Shooter Manu Bhaker Triggers Social Media Storm. All You Need to Know About The Controversy

Ankit Banerjee | April 28, 2026 1:39 PM CST

Manu Bhaker, the first Indian woman shooter to win an Olympic medal, was asked about Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in what came across as bizarre. Obviously, it will be bizarre. How can one ask an Olympic medalist in shooting about a cricketer? For the unversed, the cricketer is yet to even make his national debut. It was a question about a young achiever to another young achiever. The moment has already sparked a furore on social space.

WATCH VIDEO

#WATCH | Delhi: Olympic medallist shooter Manu Bhaker says, "... All that I have today is mostly because of shooting, which happened because of the NRAI... It is a comfortable and liberating system that we have... In the past 10 to 15 years, I have seen growth in the number of… pic.twitter.com/ueXAqiicKV
— ANI (@ANI) April 27, 2026

Speaking on the sidelines of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) 75th anniversary celebrations in Delhi, Manu spoke about Sooryavanshi.

"I would say that if the mentorship is good, the company around him is good, and the people around are good, then age is just a number. And there is no age for talent. Great things happen at 60, they happen at six. So if the people around him mentor him well and guide him properly, then I am sure he will be the next big star," the 24-year-old shooter was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

‘Ask Vaibhav Sooryavanshi about Manu Bhaker’

Reacting to the question directed at Manu, former KKR team director, Joy Bhattacharjya wrote on X: "Folks, she is an Olympic medallist. To ask her what she thinks of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is unfair to her achievements and her sport. Cricket anyway is the ruling passion of the country; your sports editors do not need another celebrity quote to spin a headline on Sooryavanshi. Optionally, next time ask Vaibhav Sooryavanshi about Manu Bhaker and see the looks you get."

There is no two ways about the intention of the question. The question was posed with an aim to garner eyeballs. Sooryavanshi is a hot property in the country and his popularity seems to be growing all the time, thanks to his heroics with the bat in the ongoing IPL.