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The 15-year-old Rajasthan Royals (RR) sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi continues to stun world-class bowlers with his audacious strokeplay and intent during the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, smashing legendary spinner Sunil Narine for a six on the second ball faced against him during the clash against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens on Sunday.
The prodigious batter continues to make a mockery out of bowling attacks irrespective of the team, taking out likes of Vaibhav Arora, Cameron Green, Kartik Tyagi and Narine during his knock of 28-ball 46, with six fours and two sixes at a strike rate of 164.29. Starting his IPL career with a six against Shardul Thakur on his very first IPL ball, Sooryavanshi has asserted his authority and showcased the exuberance of youth against some of the world's best. The most cherished first ball hit he has is against Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, smashing him for a six on the very first time he faced him against the Mumbai Indians (MI) during a rain-truncated 11-over clash this season. Against defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) this year, he smacked veterans Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood on the first ball against them. On his first ball against India's leading T20I wicket-taker, Arshdeep Singh, and spinner Washington Sundar last season, he has collected six and four, respectively. Against South African pacer Marco Jansen, he produced a first-ball six against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) last year. He also has preserved disdainful treatment for Mohammed Siraj while facing GT, smashing him for a first-ball six last year. Sooryavanshi is the fourth-highest run-getter this season, scoring 246 runs in six matches at an average of 41.00 and a strike rate of 236.53, including two fifties and a best score of 78. In his 13 IPL matches, he has made 498 runs at an average of 38.30, with a strike rate of 220.35, including a century and three fifties, with 42 fours and 44 sixes in 226 balls. Coming to the match, RR opted to bat first, with a 81-run stand between Yashasvi Jaiswal (39 in 29 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes) and Vaibhav giving RR a fine start. However, they could not capitalise on the fine start provided by openers as efforts from Kartik Tyagi (3/22) and Varun Chakravarthy (3/14) reduced RR to 155/9. (ANI)
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