IPL 2026: ‘Responsibility rests on his shoulders’ – Saba Karim reflects on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s match-winning show against LSG

Former Indian cricketer Saba Karim has opined that the Rajasthan Royals are heavily reliant on the 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi with the bat in 2026, after their seven-wicket victory against the Lucknow Super Giants ensured they remain in the hunt for the playoffs. 

Chasing a daunting target of 221, the starlet Sooryavanshi scored a brilliant 38-ball 93, which was the backbone of the Royals’ chase, as they got home in 19.1 overs. Karim has stated that the Royals have struggled when Sooryavanshi has been dismissed in the 40s and 50s, but have thrived when he has gone on past that mark. 

“When he gets out in the 40s and 50s, even then you find RR in trouble. So, it is not only the way he scores runs, but the amount of runs he scores. Anything beyond 80-90 puts Rajasthan in a very healthy state. All the occasions where he has scored 40 or 50, the other batters have struggled. Responsibility rests quite lightly on his shoulders,” Karim said, speaking on ESPNCricinfo’s TimeOut show.

Sooryavanshi’s knock was laced with seven fours and 10 big maximums, and he scored at a strike rate of around 245. Yashasvi Jaiswal, leading the team in the absence of skipper Riyan Parag, scored a 23-ball 43, and Dhruv Jurel scored an unbeaten 38-ball 53. Karim added that the young prodigy looked like he was batting on a different surface, against a different opposition, due to the sheer dominance he showed.

“If you watched the others bat, all of them batted at a strike rate of 130-140. Even Dhruv Jurel batted quite well. And there you seen Sooryavanshi notching up 93 at a strike rate of 240-odd. Where is it heading? What more is he capable of? It looks like he is playing against a different opposition altogether. Quite extraordinary,” he said.

Sooryavanshi has had a brilliant sophomore year in the IPL in 2026, after having a brilliant breakout season in 2025. He has scored 579 runs at a whopping strike rate of 236.32, handing a merciless walloping to all bowlers that have stood in front of him. He has three half-century scores and one brilliant century, his second in the IPL.