New Chandigarh, May 27 (IANS) Teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi delivered one of the most incredible innings in the history of the knockout stage of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as he scored 97 runs off 28 balls, leaving Sunrisers Hyderabad stunned and leading Rajasthan Royals to 243/8 in 20 overs in the Eliminator of the IPL 2026 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, New Chandigarh.

The 15-year-old set records with a remarkable display of hitting. He reached his fifty in just 16 balls, matching the fastest in an IPL playoff, alongside Suresh Raina’s effort in 2014. Sooryavanshi also broke Chris Gayle’s record for the most sixes in a T20 tournament. Just three runs shy of the fastest IPL hundred, he fell for 97 off 28 balls after completely dismantling SRH’s bowling strategy and turning the powerplay into chaos.

Pat Cummins used an unusual defensive strategy, placing deep square leg and deep midwicket for Sooryavanshi. He bowled almost exclusively full and straight to limit Sooryavanshi’s scoring opportunities. The plan almost worked for three balls until one well-placed delivery sailed over mid-off for six.

Rajasthan Royals were nine without loss after the first over, and things quickly worsened from there. Eshan Malinga, chosen over Praful Hinge as the new bowler, faced a similar outcome. Sooryavanshi hooked a surprise short ball over backward square leg, and Rajasthan raced to 20 for 0 in two overs.

Cummins stuck to his yorker-heavy tactic, but the margin for error was slim. Two full deliveries were hit for four and six before Sooryavanshi uppercut a short ball and flat-batted a slower delivery straight down the ground. By the fourth over, he had scored 36 off 10 balls, with RR at an astonishing 63 without loss. The onslaught continued against Sakib Hussain, who was hit over extra cover, long-off, and behind square in an over that saw Sooryavanshi surpass Gayle’s six-hitting record.

At the other end, Yashasvi Jaiswal had one of the strangest supporting roles in T20 history. He crawled to 19 off 16 while watching his teenage partner dominate every possible delivery. Sooryavanshi seemed on track to break Gayle’s 30-ball IPL century record when he targeted Hinge, but after reaching 97 off 28, he top-edged an attempted uppercut to deep third. The innings ended with RR at 125 for 1 in eight overs, leaving the crowd in disbelief at what they had just seen.

Play steadied briefly as Shivang Kumar allowed only four runs in the next over. Jaiswal eventually fell for a run-a-ball 29 while trying to clear long-off. However, RR kept their momentum going. Dhruv Jurel seamlessly carried on with a fierce attack of his own. He first slog-swept Shivang for six, then took on Cummins in the 12th over with a scoop over short fine leg, a pulled six, and a drilled boundary past long-off from a half-volley. RR surged to 168 for 2 in 12 overs, with Jurel reaching 32 off 13.

Jurel quickly reached his sixth fifty of the season in just 20 balls, uppercutting Hinge over deep third for a remarkable boundary before falling on the next ball while trying another pull. By then, RR had raced to 192 for 3 in 13.5 overs.

The innings began to stall slightly as wickets fell in clusters. Riyan Parag (26) was dismissed, and five balls later, Dasun Shanaka (5) misjudged a shot off Malinga to long-on. But even at 220 for 5 after 17 overs, RR still had Ravindra Jadeja and Jofra Archer ready, along with Shubham Dubey available as the Impact Player.

Donovan Ferreira and Ravindra Jadeja scored 20 runs in just 12 balls towards the end. Their partnership was often risky, with chaotic running between the wickets. It ended in the 19th over when Ferreira was run out trying to take a second run that wasn’t there. Five balls later, Jofra Archer was out after Abhishek Sharma made a great catch at the long-on boundary.

Nitish Kumar Reddy finished strongly for Sunrisers Hyderabad, giving away just five runs in the 19th over with a series of precise wide yorkers and lines. Another tight final over limited Rajasthan Royals to 243 for 8, despite the earlier onslaught in the innings.

Brief scores:

Rajasthan Royals 243/8 in 20 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 97, Dhruv Jurel 50; Praful Hinge 3-54, Shivang Kumar 1-19) against Sunrisers Hyderabad

–IANS

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