Vaibhav Sooryavanshi turned the evening into his personal showcase once again, belting a stunning 38-ball 93 that powered Rajasthan Royals to a commanding seven-wicket victory over Lucknow Super Giants and pushed them to the brink of the IPL playoffs on Tuesday.
The 15-year-old prodigy, who will join the Indian senior squad on their trip to Dublin next month, produced another irresistible innings, launching 10 sixes in a breathtaking exhibition of bat speed and precision timing.
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By the time he fell, agonisingly short of a third IPL hundred by just seven runs, Sooryavanshi had effectively killed off any tension in what initially looked like a challenging chase of 221, built on Mitchell Marsh’s
57-ball-96 that had taken LSG to 220 for 5.
Capping the spectacle was Ian Bishop’s memorable on-air assessment, a line likely to be replayed for years: “He is ready.”The
Royals now sit on 14 points and require a win over the Mumbai Indians in their final league match to seal a play-off spot.
If Marsh represented raw power at its peak, Sooryavanshi showcased a different brand of dominance, using sublime skills to send even a leg-spinner’s angled slider soaring into the extra-cover stands with utter contempt.
Marsh largely punished loose deliveries for his sixes, whereas Sooryavanshi routinely dispatched good balls over the ropes, and when the bowlers did err, he dismantled them.
He has raced to 53 sixes for the season and is closing in on Chris Gayle’s record tally of 59 maximums in a single campaign. He is also just 26 runs away from reaching 600 runs this season.
Dhruv Jurel stayed till the end with an assured 38-ball 53 to formalise the chase, but the contest revolved entirely around the young star’s fireworks.
Mayank Yadav, who burst onto the 2024 IPL as India’s quickest bowler, endured a harsh lesson as Sooryavanshi plundered 29 runs off one over, pulling the short balls, drilling the fuller ones and thrashing anything wide.
The slumped shoulders of Prince Yadav, who received his first India call-up earlier in the day, reflected the mood in the LSG camp.
Skipper Rishabh Pant, already under scrutiny as he tries to rescue his white-ball international career, appeared increasingly powerless as the run-fest unfolded around him.
Earlier, Marsh had pummelled the Royals attack for a 57-ball 96, though Jofra Archer’s excellent final over for just five runs gave the visitors a late lift.
After Jos Inglis’ 29-ball-60 provided the early thrust, Marsh, widely known as ‘Bison’ in cricket circles, showcased his trademark strength, hammering 11 fours and five sixes and once again standing out as LSG’s batting mainstay in what has been a difficult season. It was also his third score of 90 or more in this campaign.
In a year filled with setbacks for LSG, Marsh’s haul of 563 runs in 13 matches has been the one bright spot for Sanjeev Goenka’s side.
Royals, who need to win their last two league games to confirm a play-off berth, underperformed with the ball, and stand-in captain Yashasvi Jaiswal’s call to field first on a true batting surface came under the scanner.
Inglis laid the foundation in the Powerplay, striking seven fours and three sixes during a rollicking opening partnership of 109 that lasted just over eight overs.
Across recent fixtures, the Royals’ bowlers have struggled to pick up wickets in the Powerplay, an issue that has repeatedly undermined their overall performance.
While Inglis went after Jofra Archer early to disrupt the Royals’ plans, Marsh maintained the tempo with ferocious strokeplay, especially his pull shots that kept clearing the boundary.
Once Inglis departed, Marsh assumed full responsibility, with one of his standout strokes being a towering six over extra cover that combined brute force with clean timing. Nicholas Pooran (16 off 11) failed to kick on, and Rishabh Pant (35 off 23 balls), despite adding 64 for the third wicket, never quite convinced. He used up several balls without shifting gears, and it appeared that recent developments in his international journey (removed from Test vice captaincy and dropped from ODIs) were weighing on him.
Sushant Mishra (0/46 in 4 overs), Brijesh Sharma (0/44 in 4 overs) and Sandeep Sharma (0/43 in 3 overs) repeatedly missed their lengths against Marsh, although young leg-spinner Yash Raj Punja (2/35) managed to trouble the batters with his variations.
In a must-win clash, the Royals’ bowling unit largely failed to deliver, with the notable exception of Archer’s final over. Jofra Archer (1/39 in 4 overs) produced four dot balls to a rampant Marsh in the 20th, denying him a second century of the season by four runs and giving Royals the momentum they needed for a ruthless chase.
(With Agency Inputs)
