Vaibhav Sooryavanshi smashed a 38-ball 93, hitting 10 sixes, as Rajasthan Royals chased down 225 to beat Lucknow Super Giants by seven wickets in 19.1 overs after LSG had posted 220 for five.
Lucknow’s total was built largely on Mitchell Marsh’s 96 off 57 and a rapid 60 off 29 from Josh Inglis; Marsh and Inglis put on a 109-run opening stand that propelled LSG to 220-5 in their 20 overs. Rajasthan answered with Sooryavanshi’s onslaught and a composed 53 not out off 38 from Dhruv Jurel, sealing the chase in the 20th over.
The scale of Sooryavanshi’s impact was striking: his 93 included 10 sixes and 88 runs from boundaries, and his season haul of 53 sixes is 15 more than anyone else in the tournament. Jofra Archer finished with 1-39 for Rajasthan and also ran out Rishabh Pant in a game where boundaries dominated and big hitting decided the result.
Earlier on May 24, India selector Ajit Agarkar had highlighted Sooryavanshi’s rise, saying: "We picked him for the India A team because he is young and immensely promising" and adding, "The idea is to give these youngsters exposure." Agarkar noted the wider pool of options, saying, "As impressive as Sooryavanshi has been, there are others who have performed strongly too," and underlined the A-team pathway by reminding observers that "Yashasvi Jaiswal is already part of the ODI set-up as well." He closed the remarks with optimism about the tour: "We are very excited about him and hopefully he can showcase his talent when he travels with the A team."
Context makes the innings more than a single-night spectacle. The knock restored Sooryavanshi to the top of the tournament’s run-scoring charts and intensified public calls for his inclusion in India’s white-ball sides; selectors have instead moved him into the India A squad that will tour Sri Lanka after the IPL. The Rajasthan win lifted them into fourth place on the table and left a simple scenario: a victory over Mumbai Indians in their final match will seal a knockout spot.
The obvious tension from the game is that a team can pile up 220 and still lose. Lucknow’s Marsh fell agonizingly short of a century, finishing on 96, and Inglis’s blistering 60 came too early to see LSG over the line. Rajasthan’s chase underlined that massive totals are no longer safe and that short, decisive innings — Sooryavanshi’s among them — can swing matches before bowlers can respond.
There is another friction point off the field. Selectors have handed Sooryavanshi an India A ticket to Sri Lanka to accelerate his development, but Ajit Agarkar’s repeated caveat that others have "performed strongly too" signals cautious management of a crowded, high-performing pool. The A-team selection is both an endorsement and a test: it offers exposure but does not guarantee an immediate senior call-up.
Rajasthan now head into a decisive finale with momentum and a player in red-hot form. If they beat Mumbai Indians, the club will clinch a knockout place; for Sooryavanshi, the India A tour is the next chance to translate IPL fireworks into international credentials. His 93 on a night when 225 was required to win does more than move Rajasthan up the table — it insists that selectors and opponents take him seriously at the next level.
