The Indian Premier League (IPL) contest between Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Capitals was billed as a battle between Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Mitchell Starc. After smashing Jasprit Bumrah, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins, one expected the Australian left-arm pacer to get a first taste of the young prodigy and his brilliance. However, it wasn’t meant to be at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Friday. The 15-year-old lasted just two balls in the middle as he was sent back to the pavilion by Kyle Jamieson.
Sooryavanshi smashed the first ball he faced for a boundary; however, he lost his wicket on the very next delivery. The tall New Zealand pacer dished out a low-dipping full toss. The left-hander, who was hanging back in the crease, looked to dig it out, but the delivery took an under-edge, and the ball rolled off the back pad onto the stumps.
The stumps were rattled, and Jamieson and the rest of the Delhi lineup were pumped up. On the other hand, Sooryavanshi sported a dejected look as he walked back to the hut after scoring just four runs. Jamieson even gave a fiery send-off as he celebrated right in the face of the youngster.
The match between the Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Capitals began with Riyan Parag winning the toss and opting to bat. However, the hosts got off to a poor start as opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed in the opening over by Starc. Sooryavanshi didn’t get to face a single ball off the bowling of Starc as the first six deliveries of his over were played by Jaiswal and Dhruv Jurel.
Rajasthan’s troubles mounted in the next over when Sooryavanshi lost his wicket to Jamieson. Sooryavanshi’s wicket was a big one for the Capitals, considering the form he has shown in the IPL 2026 season. Earlier, in the tournament, he became the fastest to surpass 400 runs in a single edition, in terms of balls faced.
What did the captains say at the toss?
At the toss, Rajasthan captain Parag said his decision to bat first was dictated by the pitch, as he expects the track to get a bit slower as the game progresses.
“We’re going to bat first. I think it’s not the usual Jaipur wicket. It’s a bit dry; we noticed that yesterday, and the pitch played a little faster the other day. So hopefully it gets a little slow in the back end, so that’s why we’re batting first,” said Parag.
“Everyone’s stepping up. That has been the motto, like, as I was saying, we haven’t been playing proper and complete cricket for 40 overs. Hopefully we can narrow it down as the tournament reaches the business end. Another show today and we can rest for a few days,” he added.
For the fixture in Jaipur, the Royals made two changes to their lineup while the Capitals also rang in the changes, bringing in Pathum Nissanka, Mitchell Starc and Ashutosh Shama in the playing XI.