IPL 2026: ‘My New Favourite Player’ — Pat Cummins in Awe of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi After Brutal Knock | WATCH

Pat Cummins was full of praise for teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi after witnessing his explosive batting in Indian Premier League 2026. The 15-year-old smashed a stunning 103 off just 37 balls for Rajasthan Royals against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

His innings included five fours and 12 sixes and lit up Jaipur, although SRH chased down the big target of 228 to win by five wickets.

Fearless batting against top bowlers

Sooryavanshi showed no fear, even against Cummins. He hit a six off the very first ball he faced from the SRH captain, making his intent clear. Despite facing only a few balls from him, the youngster attacked confidently.

Earlier in the season, he had also taken on top pacers like Jasprit Bumrah and Josh Hazlewood, showing his ability to dominate quality bowling.

Speaking after the match, Cummins said: “I think he’s my new favourite player. He hits the ball so hard, it’s great to watch. It’s good fun.”

He added, “You have to be right on the money as a bowler. If you are not, it’s going a long way. It’s impressive. He has had a great start to his career, and yeah, I like the way he plays. Takes the game on.”

Cummins reflects on comeback and team effort

Cummins, who was returning after a break, admitted there were some doubts before the game. “Really happy with the win. You are never quite sure how it is going to come out first game. Preparations were good.”

He also joked about modern T20 cricket: “Ah, I do not know. We need to start working on our batting.”

SRH’s strong team performance

Cummins praised his team’s overall effort, especially the young players and stand-in captain Ishan Kishan. “They have been awesome. Ishan led them beautifully… the young guys have been awesome,” he said.

Talking about the chase, he added: “We got off to a flyer in the powerplay and then it was just 10 runs per over. Abhishek, Ishan and these guys scored runs pretty quickly. We have got a very calm and confident group.”

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