IPL 2026: ‘Incredible’ Sooryavanshi wins first round against Bumrah

GUWAHATI: It’s not just fast bowlers who hunt in pairs. Openers do so too, just like left-handers Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal are doing for Rajasthan Royals this season. In Rajasthan’s second game against Gujarat Titans, the duo became the fastest Indian opening pair to get to 500 IPL runs, surpassing Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir. They then added 80 runs in 30 balls in the truncated game against Mumbai Indians on Tuesday.

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The match itself was billed around Sooryavanshi, all of 15, facing Jasprit Bumrah for the first time ever. Sooryavanshi delivered in style, hitting the talismanic pacer twice over the fence in the first over bowled by Bumrah. The very first ball the Samastipur boy faced off the pacer flew over the long-on boundary and the fourth was nonchalantly dispatched into the midwicket stand. Sooryavanshi had won the first round against arguably the best bowler in the world.




The batter was out after a blistering 39 off 14 balls and was visibly in tears while on his way back to the pavilion but the damage was done by then. Jaiswal, the more experienced partner, carried his bat through the innings, scoring an unbeaten 77 off 32 balls to pile on the agony for MI’s bowlers. Talking about their blazing partnerships up front, the 24-year-old Jaiswal said, “It’s amazing to bat with Vaibhav. We both like to play our shots, so the way we’re playing, we just keep passing positive messages to each other. I’ve been playing for the last few years, so I just wanted to play according to the situation and give the team the best start.”

Giving insights into his mind about Sooryavanshi’s duel with Bumrah, Jaiswal further said, “First ball, he hit him for a six and I told him to just keep playing his shots. Bindaas khel (chill and play your normal game), I told him. Of course, Bumrah bhai is one of the legends, so if Sooryavanshi is scoring against him, it’s amazing. It made us feel that we could also take down the other bowlers. So, it was quite good for him to go out and play his shots. That took the pressure off me and then I could take on someone else. It was a good partnership and we enjoyed batting with each other.”

Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag termed the pair “the best going around”. “Number one opening pair. They have got age on their side. Vaibhav is incredible. It is not oneway slogging. Jaiswal has been doing it for 3-4 years now. The skill they have plus their maturity — they are the best going around,” Parag said.

Asked about Sooryavanshi’s fearless innings while facing the likes of Bumrah and Trent Boult, Mumbai Indians coach Mahela Jayawardene said, “We all knew his (Sooryavanshi’s) talent from the way he went about it last year. We managed to control him last season. Every match, it’s a challenge to contain him. Bumrah probably missed the length a little bit and he was ready for this. It’ll be fascinating to see how he evolves.”



“It’s quite fascinating to see a 17 or 16-year-old (15-year) boy playing the way he played,” MI skipper Hardik Pandya said. “We discussed so much about him in our preparation leading up to the game. The way he bats — the kind of fearlessness he has, the kind of shots he plays — it’s amazing to see.”

Of course, the more experienced Jaiswal, now the leading run-scorer (170) and Orange Cap holder, was the one who ensured victory for the Royals. As Jayawardene said, “Don’t forget Jaiswal was the key, the way he batted. He took us on early and batted through the innings.”
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