Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s sensational IPL 2026 Eliminator knock against Sunrisers Hyderabad has left the cricketing world in complete awe, and former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has now joined the growing list of legends praising the Rajasthan Royals teenager. Ashwin, speaking on his YouTube channel after Rajasthan Royals’ dominant victory over SRH in Mullanpur, admitted he was stunned not just by the fearless strokeplay but by the incredible mental maturity Sooryavanshi has displayed at only 15 years of age.
The veteran spinner even joked that the youngster’s parents should protect him from the “evil eye” following his extraordinary rise this season. “I don’t want to play the 15-year-old boy card, but tell me how many matches did he play at age 15 to get this level of mental maturity?” Ashwin said while analysing the innings.
The former India off-spinner highlighted how quickly Sooryavanshi has evolved as a batter within a single IPL season. According to Ashwin, one of the clearest examples of that growth was the teenager’s improved handling of short-pitched bowling.
“If you remember his upper-cut over third man for six, earlier in the season he was trying to hit that ball straight and getting top edges. But inside one season, he has already made those adjustments. That is unbelievable for someone so young,” Ravichandran Ashwin explained.
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Sooryavanshi’s breathtaking innings completely dismantled Sunrisers Hyderabad’s bowling plans during the high-pressure Eliminator. Pat Cummins kept rotating bowlers, changing field placements and trying different tactics to slow the teenager down, but nothing worked consistently once the RR opener settled at the crease. Pace-off deliveries, yorkers, hard lengths and bodyline bowling were all attempted by SRH, but Sooryavanshi adapted instantly throughout the innings.
He initially dominated anything overpitched straight down the ground before shifting gears against shorter deliveries by targeting square boundaries with upper-cuts, pulls and fierce pick-up shots over backward square leg. Ashwin was especially impressed with the youngster’s attitude after falling agonisingly short of a century. Sooryavanshi smashed 97 off just 29 balls, hammering 12 sixes and five boundaries at a staggering strike rate of 334.48, finishing only three runs short of the fastest century in IPL history.
“He is not a normal player. His parents need to do whatever it takes to remove the evil eye from him,” Ravichandran Ashwin joked. “Even after the innings, he said the hundred can come later and that he only wanted to help his team win. That tells you everything about his mindset.”
The former Chennai Super Kings spinner also pointed out that there had been questions about how the teenager would handle pressure during the playoffs, but Sooryavanshi answered every doubt in emphatic fashion.
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“There were questions about whether he could perform under pressure, and he was simply incredible,” Ravichandran Ashwin added. By the time Sooryavanshi finally departed, Rajasthan Royals had already taken complete control of the knockout clash. RR eventually posted 243/8 before bowling SRH out for 196 to secure a commanding 47-run victory and advance to Qualifier 2.
The teenage sensation has now accumulated 680 runs in IPL 2026 at an astonishing strike rate of 242.86, strengthening conversations around his future with the Indian team and cementing his status as one of the most exciting young talents world cricket has seen in years.
