NEW DELHI: As Gujarat Titans celebrated their place in the IPL 2026 final, a distraught Vaibhav Sooryavanshi sat quietly in the Rajasthan Royals dugout. The 15-year-old hid his face in his Orange Cap and wiped away tears, unable to mask the disappointment of seeing his team’s campaign come to an end.It was a rare sight. Throughout the season, Sooryavanshi had played with freedom and a smile, fearlessly taking on some of the world’s best bowlers and lighting up stadiums with his breathtaking strokeplay. But on Friday night in Mullanpur, the teenager was left heartbroken. He had done almost everything he could. A brilliant 96 off 47 balls powered Rajasthan Royals to a commanding 214/6. However, his valiant effort was not enough as Gujarat Titans secured a seven-wicket victory to book their place in the IPL final against defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru.Chasing 215, Gujarat Titans were led by captain Shubman Gill, whose unbeaten 104 helped his side reach the target with eight balls to spare in New Chandigarh. The knock overshadowed Sooryavanshi’s second successive 90-plus score in the playoffs.Sooryavanshi had carried Rajasthan Royals’ batting for much of the season, amassing 776 runs, smashing 72 sixes and rewriting record books along the way. Yet, in that moment, none of those achievements seemed to matter.Even as skipper Riyan Parag addressed the broadcasters during the post-match presentation, Sooryavanshi remained seated in the dugout, struggling to contain his emotions. A member of the support staff sat beside him, offering comfort to a youngster who had given everything for his team but fallen agonisingly short of the final hurdle.“I can’t really put it in words. There’s one way where you just go and slog and then you get a lot of runs. But the way he’s batted, it’s not just slogging. It’s not blind slogging. You can’t do what you just did today if you were just going from ball one,” RR captain Parag said after the match.“He calculates, he assesses conditions. He does literally everything well. I still can’t figure out how. But hopefully he keeps doing that. Hopefully he represents our country and brings more laurels to the country. And hopefully he keeps on playing for Rajasthan Royals and gets us to that second championship,” Parag added.At just 15 years of age, Sooryavanshi showed that behind the fearless batting, towering sixes and record-breaking performances is a young cricketer who deeply cares about his team. Individual milestones and personal accolades could not ease the pain of elimination.His IPL 2026 journey may have ended in tears, but it also marked the arrival of one of the brightest young talents in the game. Rajasthan Royals’ season is over, but for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, this feels like just the beginning.
