"Dear Vaibhav, Well Done": Virat Kohli anoints IPL’s newest Orange Cap holder

GUWAHATI: Guwahati witnessed the immense brilliance of 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi of the Rajasthan Royals yesterday. Vaibhav's explosive 78 runs off just 26 balls (hitting seven sixes and eight fours) set the stage for a dominant victory over the defending champions, RCB.

Chasing a target of 202 runs, Rajasthan reached the total with 12 balls and six wickets to spare, thanks to Vaibhav's start and an unbeaten 81* from Dhruv Jurel. With this win, Rajasthan remains at the top of the IPL 2026 points table.

After the match, Virat Kohli showed great sportsmanship by praising the youngster. Kohli signed a cap for Vaibhav, writing "Dear Vaibhav, Well done." Having surged to the top of the run-scoring charts, Vaibhav was also awarded the Orange Cap. Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya also recently noted that Vaibhav's game is "beautiful to watch" and predicted a bright future for the teenage sensation.

After losing Yashasvi Jaiswal (13) in the second over yesterday, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Dhruv Jurel came together for Rajasthan. When Krunal Pandya dismissed Vaibhav on the first ball of the ninth over, the team was at 129/2. Shimron Hetmyer (0) and captain Riyan Parag (3) were quickly dismissed thereafter, but Jurel moved ahead with Ravindra Jadeja to secure the fifth-wicket partnership and the win.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), who lost the toss against Rajasthan Royals in a match that started late due to rain, were put in to bat and posted a score of 201/8 in the stipulated 20 overs. Phil Salt (0), Devdutt Padikkal (14), Virat Kohli (32), Krunal Pandya (1), and Jitesh Sharma (5) were dismissed as RCB struggled early.

Despite being at 89/5 in the first ten overs, skipper Rajat Patidar anchored the innings with a vital 63 off 40 balls (including four fours and four sixes) to take them past 200. Rajat was supported by Romario Shepherd (22) and Venkatesh Iyer (29 not out), while Tim David contributed 13 runs.

The match, originally scheduled for 7:30 PM, finally started at 8:40 PM, though the overs were not reduced. RCB’s innings suffered a blow on the very first ball when Jofra Archer's delivery hit Phil Salt's bat and popped up to keeper Jurel. Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli then attempted to rebuild, but Archer dismissed Padikkal (caught by Hetmyer) in the third over. Ravi Bishnoi then struck a double blow, bowling Kohli in the fifth over and getting Krunal Pandya caught by Hetmyer in the seventh. In the ninth over, Brijesh Sharma trapped Jitesh Sharma LBW, leaving RCB reeling at 76/5.