TimesofIndia.com in Mullanpur: For the cricket world, what unfolded at Mullanpur during the IPL 2026 Eliminator between Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad felt magical. A 15-year-old dismantled an attack led by Pat Cummins without blinking twice.But 1,300 kilometres away in Tajpur, a small village 12km from Bihar’s Samastipur district, nobody was surprised. And Ravi Prakash Jha, who has been bowling to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi since the boy was five, was one of many.The villagers packed inside Sooryavanshi’s home, watching the prodigy do what they have seen him do for years: smash bowlers twice his age into submission.When Sooryavanshi fell short of a century, there was disappointment for barely a moment before the room collectively shrugged it off and said: “Koi baat nahi, agle match mein aa jayega” (It’s okay, he’ll get it in the next match).Once Sooryavanshi’s tornado-like innings ended after a 29-ball 97 blitz, there was hardly a single person in the stadium who was not left stunned. In the first 16 balls he faced, he smoked eight sixes. Even in book cricket, one can barely imagine hitting a six every two balls.“Ye book cricket 8 saal ki umar se khel raha hai (He has been playing this book cricket since he was eight),” said Jha with a laugh.
Rajasthan Royals’ Vaibhav Sooryavanshi walks back after scoring a 29- ball 97 against Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2026 Eliminator. (PTI)
Jha, now 22, has been bowling to Sooryavanshi since the wonderkid was five and he was 12. He shared a couple of anecdotes from the early days of long hours spent under the sun.“Very few people know that he was picked for Bihar’s U-19 team when he was eight. He was not selected because of his age.“In one of the U-12 matches at Patna’s Moinul Haq Stadium, he scored 153 runs. Out of the 15 sixes he hit, seven balls could not even be traced because they landed outside the ground,” he says.Jha continues: “Three weeks before he was picked in Bihar’s Ranji Trophy probables in 2022 as a 12-year-old, allegations were raised about his age. The BCCI called him to Bengaluru, where he had to undergo a bone test. (VVS) Laxman sir wanted to squash these speculations once and for all. He is only 15, and at such a young age, he has already gone through things that even a 30-year-old hasn’t.”
Sab temperament ka khel hai, aur Vaibhav par Bhole ka haath hai
Ravi Prakash Jha
“Sab temperament ka khel hai, aur Vaibhav par Bhole ka haath hai (Cricket is a game of temperament, and he has Lord Shiva’s blessings),” he says.On his YouTube channel, R Ashwin spoke in detail about how Sooryavanshi has worked on his game during the tournament itself. Be it Mohsin Khan, Prafull Hinge or Mohammed Siraj, all troubled him with sharp short balls aimed at the body. Mohsin even bowled a maiden over to him. Hinge dismissed him for a golden duck, while Siraj repeatedly beat him from the same length.What stood out, however, is how quickly Sooryavanshi made the minute adjustments. Within weeks, he worked on his game and started playing the upper cut against the bouncer with confidence. The second six off Pat Cummins in his second over was a perfect example.
Rajasthan Royals’ Vaibhav Sooryavanshi plays a shot during the Indian Premier League cricket match against the Sunrisers Hyderabad. (AP)
“If you remember his upper cut over third man for six, earlier in the season he was trying to play the same ball straight and was getting top edges. Within a season, he made such changes at the age of just 15. He is not a normal player,” Ashwin said.Prafull Hinge dismissed Sooryavanshi twice in three matches. But in the reverse fixture between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals, Sooryavanshi smashed four consecutive sixes off Hinge. In the Eliminator, before falling to Hinge, he had already plundered 28 runs in the over with three sixes and two boundaries.“Ek baar agar kisi ne out kar diya toh phir us bowler ki khair nahi. Ek din maine usse do baar out kar diya, uske baad itna maara ki hum sar pakad ke baith gaye. Ek pull shot aisa maara ki net phaad diya. (If someone manages to get him out once, that bowler is in trouble after that. One day, I dismissed him twice, and then he thrashed me so much that I was in disbelief. He played a pull shot with such force that he tore the practice net),” recalled Jha.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Mohammed Siraj (Image credit: BCCI/IPL)
On Friday, the battle between Siraj and Sooryavanshi will once again be one of the most fascinating contests to watch. In their previous meeting, before eventually getting out, the teenager had already struck Siraj for three exquisite boundaries.Now they are set to face each other again. Siraj will come armed with pace, hostility and plans. Sooryavanshi will walk in with fearless intent and a bat that currently seems incapable of staying quiet for too long. And somewhere in Tajpur, they will watch calmly, because for them, this is nothing new.