Sooryavanshi struck a century in 36 balls, the third fastest in IPL history in RR v SRH game.
Pat Cummins, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain, made his return to the team in the recent IPL 2026 game against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on April 25 in Jaipur. However, he was greeted with a scintillating century by Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
Sooryavanshi hammered 103 in 37 balls with 5 fours and 12 sixes, including reaching his ton in 36 balls, hitting the third fastest century ever in the IPL. He also became the youngest and first uncapped Indian to score more than one century in IPL. His ton and 51 by Dhruv Jurel and 33 by Donovan Ferreira took RR to 228/6 in 20 overs.
In response, Abhishek Sharma (57) and Ishan Kishan (74), along with Nitish Kumar Reddy (36), took the attack to RR bowlers and won the game by 5 wickets in 18.3 overs.
The focus, despite RR’s loss,s was Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who smashed Pat Cummins for a huge six on the first ball he had faced. Earlier in the season, the young player faced Josh Hazlewood and Jasprit Bumrah, two excellent pacers, and once again showed that he was capable of dominating elite bowling.
“I think he’s my new favorite player. He hits the ball so hard; it’s great to watch. It’s good fun. You have to be right on the money as a bowler. If you are not, it’s going a long way. It’s impressive. He has had a great start to his career, and yeah, I like the way he plays. Takes the game on,” Cummins said in the post-match press conference.
Reflecting on his own comeback, Cummins admitted there were initial uncertainties.
“Really happy with the win. You are never quite sure how it is going to come out in the first game. Preparations were good. Ah, I do not know. We need to start working on our batting,” Cummins added.
Cummins praised the depth of his team, particularly the young bowlers and backup captain, Kishan Ishan.
“They have been awesome. Ishan led them beautifully… the young guys have been awesome. We got off to a flyer in the power play, and then it was just 10 runs per over. Abhishek, Ishan, and these guys scored runs pretty quickly. We have got a very calm and confident group,” Cummins said.
(ANI inputs)