Rajasthan Royals’ 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is rewriting the history books. On Friday, during the IPL 2026 Qualifier 2 against Gujarat Titans in Mullanpur, he became the first batter in IPL history to score more than 500 runs just in the powerplay overs in a single season. He picked up 31 of those runs in the powerplay during this match—playing a little slower than usual, but every run counted toward his stunning total.
No one else has touched those numbers. David Warner held the old record, with 467 runs for Sunrisers Hyderabad back in 2016. Travis Head and Sai Sudharsan are next with 402 each (in 2024 and 2025), while Adam Gilchrist rounded out the list with 382 in 2009.
Here’s the top five for most runs in overs 1-6 in an IPL season:
521 – Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in 2026 (Strike Rate: 233.63)
467 – David Warner in 2016 (Strike Rate: 150.16)
402 – Travis Head in 2024 (Strike Rate: 208.29)
402 – Sai Sudharsan in 2025 (Strike Rate: 155.81)
382 – Adam Gilchrist in 2009 (Strike Rate: 165.36)
At the toss, Rajasthan captain Riyan Parag decided to bat first. He sounded relaxed but focused. “We’re batting first. The pitch looks similar to the last game and usually slows down a bit at the back end. I’ve got more bowlers who use the slower ball, so we’re trying to take advantage of that. Momentum’s good, everyone’s eager to win, and the message is simple—we play a full, solid 40 overs. Whoever plays better cricket wins,” he said, not hiding the strain of the late-stage season. “Fitness-wise? Everyone’s hanging by a thread. I know I am!” he admitted with a grin.
He gave a shoutout to the support staff for keeping the players going through injuries and exhaustion but made it clear: once the match starts, it’s all in. “Same team—no changes,” Parag confirmed.
Gujarat Titans, for their part, made one switch. R Sai Kishore came back into the XI, with the rest of the lineup unchanged.
So, here’s how both teams lined up:
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Donovan Ferreira, Dasun Shanaka, Ravindra Jadeja, Jogra Archer, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Yash Raj Punja.
Gujarat Titans: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Nishant Sindhu, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Kagiso Rabada, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj.
