Rajasthan Royals'Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is receiving praise from all quarters, after his another impressive knock, scoring 39 off just 13 balls against Mumbai Indians in a truncated game of 11-over per side on Tuesday, April 7 in Guwahati. The 15-year-old batter even smashed two sixes off Jasprit Bumrah in the first over while facing the Indian pacer for the first time.
Dale Steyn lavishes praise on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
Sooryavanshi's inning of 39 runs of 13 deliveries was consisted of five massive sixes and one four, giving RR an upper hand for the rest of the game.
Taking on Jasprit Bumrah with such ease is no joke. Former South Africa pacer Dale Steyn has reflected on the impact of Sooryavanshi's attacking knock against the star Indian bowler.
Steyn believes that Vaibhav's intent instilled fears in the minds of bowlers and even made Bumrah slightly cautious with his line and length against the young batter.
"He's created and instilled the fear into bowlers that he's going to hit you for boundaries. "That delivery (first ball to Sooryavanshi) from Bumrah. That's in the slot. That's so rare of Bumrah. So even the great Bumrah is thinking in the back of his mind: 'don't get it wrong; because if I get it wrong, this guy's going to hit me for six'," said Dale Steyn in ESPNcricinfo's TimeOut.
The opening duo of Vaibhav and Yashasvi Jaiswal (77 unbeaten of 32 balls) built a partnership of 80 runs as RR managed to reach 150/3 in 11 overs.
In the second innings, MI's batter never looked settled on the pitch as Hardik Pandya-led side managed to reach only 123/9 in 11 overs, losing the game by 27 runs.
Rajasthan Royals' strong hold in IPL 2026
Rajasthan Royals extended their winning streak and maintained their perfect record in IPL 2026, topping the points table. Meanwhile, the Mumbai Indians suffered their second consecutive loss after an earlier defeat to the Delhi Capitals.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's red-hot form in IPL 2026
Vaibhav Sooryavansi kicked off the IPL 2026 with a bang, as the 15-year-old batter has amassed 122 runs in just three games at an amazing strike rate of 278.57. So far in the tournament, Sooryavanshi has already smashed 10 fours and 11 sixes, consisting of a 15-ball half-century against Chennai Super Kings.