NEW DELHI: Young batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is proving unstoppable. When he is in full flow, no bowling attack can prevent him from going all guns blazing – and that was evident on Monday night. After a power-packed performance by Rajasthan Royals bowlers restricted Chennai Super Kings to a modest 127, the spotlight shifted to the 15-year-old, who did what he does best – attack from the very first ball.Sooryavanshi smashed 52 runs off just 17 balls – a blistering knock featuring five sixes and four boundaries – as Rajasthan Royals kicked off their IPL 2026 campaign with a dominant eight-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings at the ACA Stadium on Monday.
His half-century came in just 15 deliveries, the third-fastest in IPL history, setting up a comfortable victory for RR.RR register biggest winRajasthan Royals chased down CSK’s 127 in just 12.1 overs, finishing with eight wickets in hand and 47 balls to spare. This marked their biggest win in terms of balls remaining.The overall IPL record is still held by Mumbai Indians, who registered an 87-ball victory over Kolkata Knight Riders in 2008.Since 2020, Rajasthan Royals have now won nine of their 11 matches against Chennai Super Kings.“I didn’t really do anything outside – there was supposed to be a cake cutting, but I went to sleep early to avoid the cake-smearing (on how he celebrated his birthday). The plan today was simply to execute well in the powerplay – initially the wicket felt a bit sticky, but as the ball got older, it started coming onto the bat nicely (on his batting approach),” Sooryavanshi said after the match.“I do think about defence, but today our plan was to control the game in the powerplay because in a small chase, that phase is crucial – if the bowling team does well there, the game can tilt their way, but our powerplay went really well (on his aggressive intent),” he said.“The coaches didn’t specifically say that bowlers would attack me – everyone else was already saying that – but they just told me that they back me and that I should stick to my natural game and play according to the situation (on guidance from the support staff). My opening partner (Jaiswal) keeps communicating with me after every ball – he tells me when to take singles, keeps giving me the strike, and encourages me to keep playing my shots if the ball is coming nicely onto the bat (on partnership understanding),” the 15-year-old cricketer said.
