There was a real sense of excitement that had engulfed most cricket fans in India ahead of the Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings clash in Guwahati on Monday. The anticipation revolved around what teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi could offer to the crowd and those watching at home to light up their evening.
The southpaw did not disappoint the fans as he blazed his way to a 17-ball 52 in an innings filled with four fours and five sixes. The performance knocked the wind out of ’s sails, who may have hoped to dent early and make it hard for the hosts to chase the moderate score of 128 runs for victory.
RR captain Riyan Parag later said that he and Dhruv Jurel were in awe watching Sooryavanshi bat in the middle, and the left-hander had been assured that he would get to play all 14 games in 2026.
“What I tell him is that you’re going to play 14 games, and regardless of what goes on in the game, it shouldn’t bother you. What goes around in the media shouldn’t bother you. You just go out there. He loves to bat. I’ve made sure I’ve told the coaches that he gets as much batting as he wants. And he goes and does some things like that. So I think me and Dhruv, when we were sitting there till the fourth over, we were just in awe. Like, what is happening? Like, how is he doing this? But then I’m really happy to have him in my team,” Parag said in the post-match presentation.
Sooryavanshi admitted that he did have a defence in his game, but the plan on Monday in the 128-run chase was to maximise the powerplay. He also added that coaches had encouraged to play his natural, free-flowing game in the chase.
“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.”
“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. 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,” the left-hander said.
RR next take on at the Narendra Modi Stadium in on Saturday.
