3 min readUpdated: Apr 11, 2026 08:01 AM IST
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi again stole the limelight as his belligerent 78 off 26 balls laid the foundation for the Rajasthan Royals’ chase down the 202-run target set by Royal Challengers Bengaluru by six wickets in Guwahati and maintained their unbeaten start to IPL 2026.
At the other end, Dhruv Jurel had the best seat in the house watching the 15-year-old smash the ball to different corners of the stadium. But the southpaw fell in the ninth over, the onus fell on Jurel to take RR home, and he did so by staying unbeaten on 81 runs in 43 balls to take his side home.
The 25-year-old spoke about batting along with Sooryavanshi, admitting that the game was not as easy as the teenage batting sensation was making it look.
“When I bat at number three, he makes my batting look easy. When you go in, and Vaibhav is smashing every ball, you tend to think nothing is happening on the wicket. Cricket is not as easy as he’s playing”.
ALSO READ | Vaibhav Sooryavanshi grabs Orange Cap from Yashasvi Jaiswal; Dhruv Jurel leads RR’s victory over RCB
“We were 65-70 runs in five overs, and that sixth over, Abhinandan (Singh) bowled to me. I was just telling myself to cash in,” Jurel said in the post-match presentation.
Rajasthan Royals’ Vaibhav Sooryavanshi waves his bat as he leaves the ground after losing his wicket during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati, India, Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo)
“It is good to see from the other end the way he bats, it is phenomenal,” he added.
Story continues below this ad
Jurel said that Sooryavanshi had made the match very easy for the side, and he was focussed on winning the game for RR after his dismissal.
“When Sooryavanshi got out, he had already made the match very easy. Around six-and-a-half or seven runs per over were required. My job was just to get it done. I was speaking to Riyan (Parag) and (Ravindra) Jadeja – let’s just run hard, take twos and threes. One odd ball will come, we’ll get a boundary, and we are good to go. We just tried to finish the match in the 18th or 19th over, and that’s exactly what we did,” he said.
ALSO READ | IPL: How Vaibhav Sooryavanshi turned another chase into child’s play as RR hunt down RCB’s big total
In IPL 2025, Jurel was predominantly used as a finisher down the order. But Sanju Samson’s move to CSK opened a spot for RR at the top. The wicketkeeper-batter has been entrusted to bat at number three so far this season, but is not fussed by the number he bats in the line-up.
Story continues below this ad
“To be honest, at the end of the day, you just need to win the match irrespective of what number you are batting. I was batting at 6 or 5 last year. This time I was batting at number three. The management showed some faith in me. For me, that batting number is just a number. My character has always been that I don’t need a particular number. Wherever the team needs me, I’m there,” he said.
