Sooryavanshi's explosive 97 powers Rajasthan Royals to 243/8 against Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL Eliminator

The 15-year-old sensation set the tone early with fearless strokeplay and explosive hitting, racing to a rapid half-century and keeping the innings at a blistering pace throughout his stay at the crease.

Asked to bat first, Rajasthan got off to a flying start. In the third over, Sooryavanshi smashed 23 runs off SRH skipper Pat Cummins, taking RR to 45/0.

He continued his explosive batting in the next over, bringing up a blistering half-century off just 16 balls as Rajasthan raced to 63/0. The momentum carried through the rest of the powerplay, with the Royals finishing at a dominant 80/0 after six overs.

During his stunning assault, Sooryavanshi also broke the record for most sixes in an IPL season, surpassing the previous mark of 59 held by Chris Gayle.

During the final ball of the eighth over, pacer Praful Hinge claimed the big wicket of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who fell just three runs short of what would have been the fastest century in IPL history.

The Royals opener had smashed a sensational 29-ball 97, featuring five fours and 12 massive sixes, before his dismissal.

Sooryavanshi's explosive knock had already put the Royals in a commanding position, helping them race to 136/1 at the halfway stage of the innings.

In the second delivery of the 11th over, spinner Shivang Kumar dismissed struggling Yashasvi Jaiswal, who managed a run-a-ball 29, including four boundaries. Despite the wicket, the Royals crossed the 150-run mark by the end of the over.

In the next over, bowled by SRH skipper Pat Cummins, wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel took charge, smashing 17 runs as RR surged to 168/2. Jurel then brought up a quickfire half-century off just 20 balls during the fourth delivery of the 14th over.

However, he fell immediately after reaching the milestone, with Praful Hinge striking on the very next ball. Jurel departed for a 21-ball 50, which included five fours and three sixes.

Rajasthan continued their aggressive charge, crossing the 200-run mark and reaching 207/3 after 15 overs.

In the second ball of the 16th over, Hinge struck again, removing skipper Riyan Parag, who made a quick 12-ball 26 featuring two fours and two sixes, as RR moved to 214/4.

Towards the end, Rajasthan ended up losing wickets in clusters. Donovan Ferreira (12), Dasun Shanaka (5), Jofra Archer (4), Nandre Burger (1), and Ravindra Jadeja (12*) as the Royals ended up scoring 243/8 in 20 overs.

For Hyderabad, Praful (3/54) took a three-wicket haul. Eshan Malinga (1/40), Shivang (1/19), and Nitish Reddy (1/12) were also among the wicket takers. (ANI).