Rajasthan Royals, Vaibhav Suryavanshi (AP Photo/Ashwini Bhatia)
Kagiso Rabada believes Rajasthan Royals teenager Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s impressive IPL 2026 campaign is built on fearless cricket, quick reflexes and the ability to read bowlers earlier than most players his age.The Gujarat Titans pacer heaped praise on the 15-year-old after the second qualifier on Friday, as Sooryavanshi’s stunning 96 went in vain as he chased down GT’s 215 to seal a seven-wicket win and book his place in the IPL 2026 final against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
Sooryavanshi lit up the competition once again with a 47-ball 96, after taking 97 in the Eliminator. The teenager exited the season with 776 points, ending his campaign as the top scorer for the time being, although Shubman Gill still has a chance of overtaking him in Sunday’s final. Sooryavanshi also narrowly missed out on his second successive century after being dismissed before
Rabada
.Speaking after the match, Rabada admitted that Suryavanshi continues to surprise everyone with his maturity and attacking approach.“He amazes everyone who watches the game. He has quick hands and picks up length quickly. He has a lot of energy.”The South African said that the young man’s bold mentality was one of the biggest reasons behind his success this season.“When you’re young, you have a lot of energy and no fear, and that’s exactly what he showed, no fear and just a natural instinct for the game that allows him to perform the way he does.”
Rabada felt that Sooryavanshi’s performance had already transcended discussions about age.“At this point, you can throw age out the window; it doesn’t matter how old he is. It’s amazing what he does.”Earlier, a brisk attack in Gujarat had put Rajasthan under pressure
Muhammad Siraj
Rabada struck early. However, Sooryavanshi fought back again, and engaged in a valuable partnership with
Ravindra Jadeja
who remained unbeaten with 45 runs, as Rajasthan posted 214/6.Rabada, who finished with figures of 2/35 from his four overs, admitted that Gujarat were not at their best with the ball despite restricting Rajasthan to one less than what they believed to be an even score.“The plan was to play to our strengths, as we usually do, and hope to get wickets early. We got a couple of early wickets, but they fought back after that, and we missed our mark by bowling a few too many short balls, as we probably wanted to challenge them upfront a bit more.”The fast bowler said that GT never felt out of contention despite Sooryavanshi’s counterattack.“They got away from us a little bit, but we knew we weren’t completely out of it because we knew we could still get wickets. We had the game under control until the 19th minute.”Rabada also acknowledged the challenge faced by Rashid Khan on a batting-friendly surface and felt Gujarat could have restricted Rajasthan to a lower total.“It was very difficult for Rashid (Khan) to come and bowl on that wicket as a spinner against some real power batsmen. We probably felt that 180-190 is what we should have restricted them to, barring the dropped catch (from Sooryavanshi).”GT eventually made light work of the chase through a brilliant century from captain Shubman Gill and a 167-run opening stand with Sai Sudharsan, reaching the target with eight balls to spare.Rabada also praised his bowling partnership with Siraj, saying the Indian pacer’s intensity and ability to build pressure has been crucial for Gujarat throughout the season.“Siraj is my partner this season. We’ve just been trying to work as a partnership. If he’s pressing from the other end, hopefully I can do the same, and that’s how we get wickets.”“Everyone knows him. He’s got a lot of heart, and he’s got a lot of skill as well. It’s nice to bowl with him (because) it increases your chances of getting a wicket because someone at the other end is putting just as much pressure, if not more.”