Rajasthan Royals stormed into Qualifier 2 of the IPL 2026 playoffs with a dominant 47-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Eliminator clash at the PCA Stadium in Mullanpur on Wednesday.
RR piled up a massive 243/8, riding on a breathtaking 97-run knock from teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi off just 27 deliveries. Jofra Archer then starred with the ball, picking up three crucial wickets as SRH were bowled out for 196 in 19.2 overs.
Sooryavanshi launched a brutal assault on the SRH bowling attack right from the start. The youngster raced to his half-century in only 16 balls before continuing his fearless hitting. His explosive innings powered Rajasthan to 80 runs inside the powerplay and beyond the 100-run mark in just eight overs. The left-hander smashed 12 sixes and five fours in one of the most destructive knocks of the season.
He shared a sensational 125-run opening partnership before falling just three runs short of a memorable century, dismissed by Praful Hinge. Yashasvi Jaiswal chipped in with 29 off 29 balls before Dhruv Jurel and Riyan Parag added another important 55-run stand for the third wicket.
Jurel brought up a quickfire half-century in just 20 deliveries before Hinge struck again. Parag scored 26 off 12 balls, while Ravindra Jadeja remained unbeaten on 12 at the end as RR finished with a daunting total. Hinge was the standout bowler for SRH with figures of 3/38.
In reply, Sunrisers Hyderabad suffered an early collapse after Jofra Archer removed Abhishek Sharma for a duck in the very first over. Travis Head and Ishan Kishan briefly counterattacked with a 51-run partnership, but Archer returned to dismiss Kishan for 33 off 11 balls.
Nandre Burger then removed Smaran Ravichandran cheaply before Archer struck again to send back Head for 17. Yash Raj Punja dismissed the dangerous Heinrich Klaasen for 18, leaving SRH struggling at 81/5 inside seven overs.
Nitish Kumar Reddy fought back with a rapid 38 off 20 balls alongside Salil Arora, but Rajasthan’s bowlers continued to chip away with regular wickets. Ravindra Jadeja claimed two wickets, while Sushant Mishra and Burger also made key contributions with the ball.
Shivang Kumar played a fighting knock of 27 lower down the order, but SRH eventually ran out of steam as Rajasthan sealed a comprehensive victory to keep their IPL 2026 title hopes alive.
