RR Vs CSK, IPL 2026: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Blitzkrieg Shapes Royal Hammering Of Chennai

Rajasthan Royals (RR) made a statement start to their Indian Premier League 2026 campaign, pummelling Chennai Super Kings by eight wickets at Guwahati's Barsapara Cricket Stadium on Monday (March 30).

The bowlers set it up for Rajasthan with a superb collective effort, and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi continued to evoke awe and disbelief with a 15-ball fifty that made a mockery of the 128-run target. It was a night to forget for Chennai, who seemed to get nothing right after losing the toss.

On a track which was under covers for most of the last two days due to wet weather, Chennai were put in and skittled for 127 all out in 19.4 overs. All six Rajasthan bowlers shared the wickets, with the pace duo of Nandre Burger (2/27) and Jofra Archer (2/19) and spinner Ravindra Jadeja (2/18) claiming two wickets each.

Once CSK slumped to 38 for 4 in the powerplay, there was no real recovery. Former RR captain Sanju Samson (6) had a forgetful first game for his new franchise Chennai when Burger uprooted his off stump with a 140 kph delivery.

Jadeja, playing for Rajasthan after 17 seasons with Chennai, struck twice in his first over to reduce CSK further to 57-6. With MS Dhoni not available for the first two weeks due to a calf injury, the team in yellow was in danger of opening its campaign with a sub-100 total. But Jamie Overton hit a vital 43 off 36 balls before he was run out in the last over, to take his side to a bit more respectable total.

ALSO READ: RR Vs CSK Highlights, IPL 2026

In response, the 15-year-old Sooryavanshi made CSK pay for dropping him on the first ball he faced. The southpaw smacked Matt Henry right after, and powered the chase with a whirlwind 52 off 17 balls. Yashasvi Jaiswal (38 not out) and captain Riyan Parag (14 not out) provided the finishing touches as RR waltzed past the target in just 12.1 overs.

RR Vs CSK, IPL 2026: Toss Update

Royals captain Riyan Parag won the toss and opted to bowl first against the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led Chennai Super Kings amid overcast conditions. Parag said at the toss to former India spinner Murali Kartik: "There's been a lot of rain here actually. So even though it is a red soil wicket, it's going to be a little moisture. So we want to try and extract that in the first few overs and then see how we go back into the game."

RR Vs CSK, IPL 2026: Playing XIs

Chennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Ayush Mhatre, Matthew Short, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma, Jamie Overton, Noor Ahmad, Matt Henry, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed

Impact sub: Sarfaraz Khan

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Riyan Parag (c), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi, Brijesh Sharma

Impact sub options: Donovan Ferreira, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Ravi Singh, Sushant Mishra, Tushar Deshpande