IPL 2026: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi ‘unhappy’ with impact player role for Rajasthan Royals

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (Source: IPL/IG)

Rajasthan Royals lost their first game of the season against the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on April 13.

Chasing 217, one of the key moments of the game saw 15-year-old prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi dismissed off the first ball of the Royals’ batting innings by debutant Praful Hinge. The young star has set the season alight, scoring 200 runs at a strike-rate of over 250, but was unable to provide the blistering start in Hyderabad.

The young Vaibhav has been coming in as an impact player since the last two games, including the most recent one against SRH. In the previous game against RCB, he set the stage alight with a 28-ball 76, setting the platform for their chase of 202.

Royals’ assistant coach Trevor Penny was asked about the decision to persist with Vaibhav as an impact player. Penny added that the 15-year-old himself is unhappy at not being able to take the field.

“The last game he missed out on, he wasn’t very happy because he loves his fielding. It’s not because he’s a poor fielder,” Penny told the broadcaster during the IPL 2026 match between the Sunrisers and Royals.

South African batter Donovan Ferreira was the Royals’ impact player in their first two games. Penny stated that they were waiting for Ferreira to clear his fitness test after breaking his collarbone in the SA20 at the start of the year.

“Donovan has passed his fitness test. He broke his collarbone in the SA20. He’s a gun fielder. It’s good to have him back on the field. Sadly, Vaibhav misses out,” he added.

Speaking of the game, the Sunrisers Hyderabad, after being put into bat, reached 216/6 in their 20 overs, courtesy a brilliant 44-ball 91 from Ishan Kishan. The Royals were rattled at the start of the chase as debutants Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain ran riot.

Hinge picked up four wickets in the powerplay, including a triple-wicket first over, along with one from Sakib, which left the Royals reeling at 9 for 5. Donovan Ferreira and Ravindra Jadeja tried to steady the ship, but the debutant Sakib came back to pick up three more wickets, clearing up the Royals for 159, handing them a 57-run loss.

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