Daijiworld Media Network – Jaipur
Jaipur, May 20: Rajasthan Royals’ teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi continued his sensational IPL 2026 campaign with a blistering 93 off just 38 balls against Lucknow Super Giants, powering his side to a convincing seven-wicket victory in a high-scoring encounter in Jaipur on Tuesday night.
Chasing a challenging target of 221, Sooryavanshi produced another fearless knock packed with clean hitting, smashing 10 sixes and seven boundaries to guide Rajasthan Royals home in style.
With the innings, the young batter became the youngest player in IPL history to score 500 runs in a single season, surpassing the previous record held by Rishabh Pant, who had achieved the milestone at the age of 20 for Delhi Daredevils in 2018.
Sooryavanshi also registered the highest strike rate ever recorded in an IPL season among players with over 500 runs, scoring at a staggering rate of 236.3 in IPL 2026.
The previous highest strike rates in a season belonged to Andre Russell (204.8 in 2019), Abhishek Sharma (202.0 in 2026), Nicholas Pooran (196.2 in 2025), Travis Head (191.5 in 2024), Glenn Maxwell (187.7 in 2014) and Chris Gayle (183.1 in 2011).
The RR opener further etched his name into the record books by becoming the first Indian batter to hit 50 sixes in a single IPL edition. He now has 53 sixes this season.
Only Chris Gayle has hit more sixes in a single IPL season, with 59 sixes in 2012. Sooryavanshi now sits second on the all-time list ahead of Andre Russell (52 in 2019) and Gayle’s 51 sixes in 2013.
The teenager also joined an elite list of power-hitters by becoming only the third batter in IPL history after Chris Gayle and Abhishek Sharma to hit 10 or more sixes in an innings on multiple occasions.
According to CricViz data, Rajasthan Royals have also set a new IPL record for the most sixes hit during powerplays in a single season, registering 60 sixes in IPL 2026. Sooryavanshi alone contributed 37 of those sixes, while Yashasvi Jaiswal added 12.
Earlier in the match, Lucknow Super Giants posted a formidable 220/5 after being put in to bat first.
LSG got off to a flying start through Josh Inglis and Mitchell Marsh, racing to 83 without loss in the powerplay. Inglis smashed a 30-ball fifty before departing for 60, while Marsh continued the assault with a brilliant 96 off 57 deliveries.
Captain Rishabh Pant chipped in with useful late runs as LSG crossed the 220-run mark despite losing Marsh and Pant to run-outs in the final over.
For Rajasthan Royals, Yash Raj Punja picked up two wickets, while Jofra Archer claimed one scalp.
In reply, Sooryavanshi’s explosive innings completely shifted the momentum in RR’s favour. Dhruv Jurel also played a key supporting role with a quickfire 53 as the Royals chased down the target comfortably.
With the win, Rajasthan Royals climbed to fourth place in the IPL 2026 points table with 14 points.