Loading Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's debut in India? Captain Suryakumar Yadav is already a fan

India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav praised teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi after the Rajasthan Royals batter produced another stunning innings during the IPL 2026 Eliminator against Sunrisers Hyderabad. The 15-year-old fell agonizingly short of a historic century, but his breathtaking attack still stunned some of the biggest names in cricket.

Sooryavanshi smashed 97 off just 29 balls in Mullanpur hammered 12 sixes and five fours in a stunning knock of 334 on Wednesday as Rajasthan Royals stormed into the next stage of the playoffs. After the innings, Suryakumar posted a heartfelt message on social media, calling the youngster a “star in the making”.

SRH vs RR: HIGHLIGHTS | SCORECARD

“Heads up boy…what a CLASS innings, you took everyone’s breath away. A star in the making,” Suryakumar tweeted after the match.

The innings drew reactions from across the cricketing world, with Sachin Tendulkar, Chris Gayle and Michael Vaughan among those praising the RR batter. Even before the Eliminator blitz, Vaughan suggested that India should already start considering the teenager for the senior side after his fearless performances during IPL 2026.

Sooryavanshi has now scored 680 runs this season at an average of 45.33 and a strike rate of 242.86, making him one of the biggest stories of the tournament.

HOW SOORYAVANSHI DISMANTLED SRH BOWLING

Sunrisers Hyderabad tried almost everything against Vaibhav Sooryavanshi on Wednesday evening.

Nothing worked.

Pat Cummins kept throwing the field around. The SRH captain consulted his management group repeatedly after every six. The Yorks came. Bouncers followed. Slower balls, cutters, wide lines – all possible variants were tried.

Vaibhav was letting them all into the stand.

The teenager completely dominated SRH’s bowling attack from the start, taking on Cummins with the same fearlessness he has already shown against Jasprit Bumrah, Josh Hazlewood and Kagiso Rabada this season.

Anything full disappeared straight back over the bowler’s head. Short balls were carved over third man. The deliveries that hit his pads disappeared over the delicate leg with amazing ease.

Even Cummins, considered one of the shrewdest T20 captains in world cricket, simply ran out of answers.

Vaibhav eventually finished with 97 off 29 deliveries, just three runs short of what would have been the fastest century in IPL history. But the innings still rewrote the record books.

His 12 sixes against SRH took him to 65 this season, the most by any batsman in a single IPL season and the most in any T20 tournament. in process broke Chris Gayle’s long-standing IPL record of 59 sixes from the 2012 season.

What made this feat even more absurd was the speed.

Gayle then needed 456 deliveries to reach his mark. Vaibhav surpassed her in just 266 balls.

Later after the match, the teenager admitted that he was not even aware that he was close to the fastest IPL century record during his innings.

INDIA DEBUT OFFER FOR VAIBHAV SOORYAVANSHI?

The conversation is already getting louder with each shift.

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has already publicly backed Vaibhav for a future India debut, while Suryakumar Yadav’s latest praise has only added to the excitement among fans that the 15-year-old will eventually wear the India jersey.

Right after IPL 2026, Sooryavanshi will join the India A set-up for the upcoming Sri Lanka tri-series, which could become another important step in his rapid rise.

However, not everyone believes that India should immediately throw the teenager into senior cricket.

Several former cricketers in India urged the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to avoid straining Vaibhav too soon, he cautions against rushing straight into the senior side before giving his game and temperament more time to develop naturally.

For now though, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is focusing more on helping RR win their second IPL title rather than personal milestones.

RR will face Shubman Gill-led Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2 in Dharamshala on Friday, May 29. Both the teams will battle it out for a place in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

– The end

Issued by:

Debodinna Chakraborty

Published on:

28 May 2026 08:08 IST