Mullanpur (Punjab) [India], May 28 (ANI): Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain Pat Cummins lauded Rajasthan Royals (RR) young sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi after his match-winning 97 in the IPL 2026 Eliminator, admitting that the teenager’s ability to punish even slight errors made a crucial difference in the contest.
SRH suffered a 47-run defeat against Rajasthan on Wednesday night, a result that ended their campaign in the tournament.
Rajasthan produced a dominant all-round performance to defeat Sunrisers, sealing their place in Qualifier 2 against Gujarat Titans.
Speaking after the match, Cummins acknowledged Sooryavanshi’s impact at the top of the order and praised his composure under pressure.
“Vaibhav Sooryavanshi played pretty well. Yeah, you feel like you don’t have too many options. Obviously, it’s a really good pitch, but the margins are so small. If you miss your yorker by a little bit, he doesn’t tend to miss them. So yeah, fair play,” Cummins said.
He added that SRH had no regrets over their decision to chase, despite Rajasthan posting a daunting 243/8.
“Not really. It was a pretty good wicket even there at the end,” he said.
Reflecting on the chase, the SRH skipper admitted that while the target was always challenging, his side felt they were still in the contest at the halfway stage.
“I think a few things still need to go right to chase down 240, but if there was ever going to be a pitch and a field to do it, it was this one. We stayed on the rate for most of the innings. We just kind of lost probably a couple too many wickets at the wrong time,” Cummins said.
Despite the loss, Cummins praised his team’s campaign and the emergence of young talent throughout the season.
“I think we end up as a really well-rounded team. Praful and Sakib were awesome. Young guys haven’t played a lot. I think we’re one of the youngest teams to make the playoffs, which shows the talent the coaching group has unearthed,” he said.
He also reflected positively on SRH’s overall season, noting that they remained competitive throughout the tournament.
“Two playoffs in three years… the boys have been fantastic, their attitude all year. It looks like they’ve really enjoyed their cricket,” he added.
Batting first, RR posted a massive 243/8, powered by a sensational 29-ball 97 from 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
The 15-year-old tore into the SRH attack with 12 sixes and five fours, setting the tone with a rapid half-century and continuing his assault before falling just three runs short of what would have been a record IPL century. Dhruv Jurel also contributed a quickfire 50, helping RR maintain their explosive momentum throughout the innings.
In reply, SRH suffered an early collapse, losing four wickets inside the powerplay despite a brief counterattack from Ishan Kishan. Although Nitish Kumar Reddy and Salil Arora tried to rebuild with a fighting stand, the chase never fully recovered.
Jofra Archer (3/58) and Nandre Burger (2/26) led RR’s bowling attack, consistently striking at key moments to keep SRH under pressure.
SRH were eventually bowled out for 196 in 19.2 overs, handing Rajasthan a convincing win and ending Hyderabad’s campaign in the tournament. (ANI)
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