New Chandigarh: The IPL Eliminator belonged to a teenager who played without fear or baggage, and almost without logic. On a pressure-filled knockout evening at the PCA New Chandigarh Stadium on Wednesday, 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi produced one of the most astonishing innings in IPL playoff history, smashing 97 off just 29 balls to help propel Rajasthan Royals into Qualifier 2 with a 47-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad.
The youngster’s audacious stroke-play lit up the night and left even seasoned professionals stunned. Every over seemed to carry another moment of disbelief as Sooryavanshi dismantled SRH’s bowling with clean striking that bordered on outrageous. He fell agonisingly short of a century and an all-time IPL record, but by then the damage had already been inflicted on SRH.
Chasing a massive 244, SRH never recovered after Jofra Archer’s fiery opening burst ripped through their top order. RR will meet Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 2 on Friday while SRH’s IPL 2026 campaign ended.
The night will forever be remembered for the fearless teenager’s knock.
Sooryavanshi walked in with intent and never looked back. From the moment he launched into the SRH attack, boundaries and sixes flowed at a staggering pace. He raced to fifty in just 16 deliveries, equalling Suresh Raina’s record for the fastest fifty in IPL playoffs.
The teenager looked destined to rewrite the record for the fastest hundred. Chris Gayle’s record for the fastest IPL century — off 30 balls scored in 2013 — seemed to be under serious threat.
Sooryavanshi got to 97 off only 28 balls, just one hit away from immortality. But attempting another towering six in the eighth over, he miscued Praful Hinge to deep third and was caught by Ravichandran Smaran.
For a few moments, Sooryavanshi stood frozen in the middle, unable to process what had happened. The crowd rose in appreciation as the teenager walked back after hammering 12 sixes and five fours in a knock that carried a strike rate of 334.48.
Even without the century, the innings had entered IPL folklore.
Before Sooryavanshi’s carnage, Yashasvi Jaiswal had provided stability with 29 off 29 balls. But once the youngster exploded, SRH’s bowlers looked helpless. Skipper Pat Cummins leaked 64 runs in four overs while Sakib Hussain and Praful Hinge also endured punishing spells.
Dhruv Jurel then ensured the momentum never dipped. The wicketkeeper-batter hammered a 21-ball 50 with inventive stroke-play, while skipper Riyan Parag added a rapid 26 from 12 deliveries. RR eventually piled up a daunting 243/8 – a total that always looked beyond reach. SRH were eventually bowled out for 196 in 19.2 overs.
SRH needed a flying start, but Archer made sure the chase derailed almost instantly. Abhishek Sharma fell for a duck in the first over, edging behind, before Archer castled Travis Head and dismissed the dangerous Ishan Kishan. In the space of a few overs, SRH’s aggressive top order had been removed.
At 57/4, the chase was rapidly slipping away.
Klaasen briefly threatened with an 18-ball cameo before Yash Raj Punja trapped him lbw after a review. Nitish Reddy fought hard with a 20-ball 38, while Salil Arora chipped in with 35, but RR kept striking at regular intervals.
Ravindra Jadeja controlled the middle overs superbly, removing Nitish and Salil, while Sushant Mishra cleaned up the lower order with two wickets.
Despite some late resistance from Shivang Kumar, who scored 27, the asking rate kept climbing beyond control.
While Archer’s three-wicket burst and Rajasthan’s disciplined bowling sealed the result, the night belonged entirely to Sooryavanshi.
Brief Scores: RR 243/8 (V Sooryavanshi 97, D Jurel 50, P Hinge 3/54). SRH 196 in 19.2 overs (N Reddy 38, S Arora 35, J Archer 3/58, R Jadeja 2/21). RR won by 47 runs.
