Vaibhav Suryavanshi becomes youngest cricketer to play in IPL
Jaipur, Apr 19 (PTI): Vaibhav Suryavanshi, a 14-year-old baby-faced cricketer with oodles of confidence and determination, on Saturday became the youngest player to feature in the Indian Premier League as he turned out for Rajasthan Royals against Lucknow Super Giants here.
At just 14 years and 23 days, Suryavanshi was the darling of the crowd the moment he walked alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal to open the Rajasthan Royals innings.
With determination writ large on his face, the left-handed batter sent the Sawai Mansingh Stadium crowd into a tizzy when he smacked the first ball he faced -- fourth delivery of the first over from LSG pacer Shardul Thakur -- for a huge six.
The ball simply flew over the extra-cover boundary, even as the camera zoomed towards the RR dugout, where injured skipper Sanju Samson had a cheeky smile on his face.
Suryavanshi, born on March 27, 2011 -- the year when India won the Cricket World Cup under MS Dhoni -- has played just five First-Class games for Bihar in the 2024-25 season.
He had made history in the IPL 2025 auction when, as a 13-year-old, became the youngest to get an IPL contract, being bought by the Royals for Rs 1.1 crore.
He has also represented India Under-19, scoring a 58-ball century in a four-day game against Australia Under-19.
Before Suryavanshi, Prayas Ray Barman was the youngest cricketer to play in the IPL at 16 years and 157days. Barman had played for RCB against SRH in 2019.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman played for Punjab Kings against Delhi Capitals in 2018 when he was 17 years and 11 days old.
Riyan Parag, who led RR on Saturday, is the fourth youngest on the list having donned the Royals' lersey against Chennai Super Kings in 2019 at the age of 17 years and 152 days.
By hitting a first-ball six, Suryavanshi joined an elite club that has the likes of Rob Quiney (RR), Kevon Cooper (RR), Andre Russell (KKR), Carlos Brathwaite (DD, now Delhi Capitals), Aniket Choudhary (RCB), Javon Searles (KKR), Siddesh Lad (MI), Mahesh Theekshana (CSK) and Sameer Rizvi (CSK).
Welcome to the IPL, Vaibhav💗6️⃣6⃣ pic.twitter.com/rG60DdoHJd
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) April 19, 2025
Halla Bol from Ball One! 🔥💗 pic.twitter.com/iH5r2yR1x9
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) April 19, 2025
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RCB secure IPL playoff berth with 23-run win against Punjab Kings
Dharamsala (PTI): Royal Challengers Bengaluru rode on fluent half-centuries from Virat Kohli and Venkatesh Iyer, along with a decisive opening spell from pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, to thrash Punjab Kings by 23 runs and seal a playoff berth in the IPL here on Sunday.
Kohli (58 off 37 balls), Iyer (73 not out off 40 balls) and Devdutt Padikkal (45) produced impactful knocks as RCB piled up 222 for 4 in 20 overs.
Bhuvneshwar (2/38) then removed the dangerous Punjab Kings opening pair of Priyansh Arya (0) and Prabhsimran Singh (2) early to all but shut the door on the opposition, who eventually managed 199 for 8 in their allotted 20 overs.
Pacer Rasikh Salam (3/36) compounded Punjab Kings' misery by dismissing skipper Shreyas Iyer (1) in the fourth over as the hosts slumped to 19 for 3.
Late-order batters Shashank Singh (56 off 27 balls) and Marcus Stoinis (37 off 25 balls) attempted to revive the innings with a counter-attacking effort, but the towering RCB total ultimately proved far beyond PBKS' reach.
Earlier, Kohli stitched together a 76-run stand with Devdutt for the second wicket to lay the foundation before adding another 60 runs with Venkatesh for the third wicket as table-toppers RCB delivered yet another authoritative batting display.
Brief Scores:
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: 222 for 4 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 58, Devdutt Padikkal 45, Venkatesh Iyer 73 not out; Harpreet Brar 2/35).
Punjab Kings: 199 for 8 in 20 overs (Cooper Connolly 37, Suryansh Shedge 35, Marcus Stoinis 37, Shashank Singh 56; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2/38, Rasikh Salam 3/36).
