Vaibhav Sooryavanshi hits 97 off 29 balls in IPL eliminator

May 28, 2026

Fifteen-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi scored 97 runs off 29 balls with 12 sixes to help Rajasthan Royals defeat Sunrisers Hyderabad by 47 runs in the IPL 2026 Eliminator.

On 28 May 2026 in New Chandigarh, Rajasthan Royals defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad by 47 runs to advance to Qualifier 2 of IPL 2026. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was named Player of the Match for his innings that included 12 sixes and five fours.

He surpassed Chris Gayle's record for most sixes in an IPL season and now has 65. Former spinner Ravichandran Ashwin advised the player's parents on his YouTube channel to protect him from the evil eye.

Vaibhav leads the Orange Cap race with 680 runs. After the match he said his hundreds would come but contributing to the side mattered more.

What people are saying

Initial reactions on X praise the 15-year-old's explosive 97 off 29 balls as brilliant and record-breaking, with users highlighting his rare talent, high strike rate, and comparisons to future stars; some note the innings helped RR advance and broke sixes records.

Man, I’m truly blown away by 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s 97 runs of pure brilliance!
The way he played total edge-of-the-seat stuff. Talent like this at such a young age is so rare & special.
That’s exactly why leagues like our PSL are so important that we need to create… https://t.co/SHaeYkiffT

— Javed Afridi (@JAfridi10) May 28, 2026

vaibhav sooryavanshis 97 off 29 was already madness but reliving the entire innings in 97 seconds somehow makes it feel even more unreal pure chaos fearless hitting and one of the greatest playoff knocks the ipl has ever witnessed ⚡🏏

— Shitik (@RitikV2) May 28, 2026

15-year-old cricket sensation #Vaibhav Sooryavanshi reminds me of @SAfridiofficial young, fearless, explosive, full of energy. The future is here! 🔥🏏 #Cricket #IPL2026

— Virat.kohli (@rcbianxtra) May 28, 2026

I am lucky to watch Vaibhav sooryavanshi PLAYING cricket at this young age because I never watched Sachin's childhood cricket. pic.twitter.com/CGhbuQpcZE

— KRIK-MATE👑 (@krik90mate) May 28, 2026

🚨 IPL QUALIFIER 2 TONIGHT! 🚨

🏏 Gujarat Titans 🆚 Rajasthan Royals
📍 New Chandigarh
⏰ 7:30 PM IST

One match. One final ticket.

🔥 Shubman Gill’s GT get a second chance after falling to RCB in Qualifier 1.

🔥 Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s RR arrive red-hot after eliminating SRH,… pic.twitter.com/nhdMyAGLMK

— Valorix India (@valorixindia) May 28, 2026

Sources

• https://www.aajtak.in/visualstories/sports/vaibhav-sooryavanshi-97-runs-r-ashwin-comment-rr-vs-srh-eliminator-ipl-2026-tspoa-281080-28-05-2026
• https://www.indiatoday.in/sports/cricket/story/vaibhav-sooryavanshi-justin-langer-selfie-talent-debate-ipl-2918787-2026-05-29
• https://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/of-not-so-nervous-nineties/article71034783.ece
• https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/open-page/manufacturing-loyalty-the-t20-way/article71034771.ece