Google CEO Sundar Pichai was left impressed with Vaibhav Suryavanshi's IPL debut, where he smashed a first-ball six and scored 34. However, Vaibhav's memorable IPL debut overshadowed by Rajasthan Royals defeat to Lucknow Super Giants.
Rajasthan Royals young batter Vaibhav Suryavanshi grabbed the attention of cricket lovers and experts with his brilliant performance in his IPL debut against Lucknow Super Giants at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium in Jaipur on Saturday, April 19.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi, hailing from Bihar, became the youngest player to play in IPL when came in as an impact substitute in Rajasthan Royals’ 181-run chase against Lucknow Super Giants. He opened the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal. On the first delivery of his IPL career, 14-year-old left everyone stunned by smashing a six off Shardul Thakur, marking his arrival at the grandest stage.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi continued to take on LSG bowlers by smashing a couple of more sixes and two fours while playing a brilliant knock of 34 off 20 balls at an impressive strike rate of 170. The youngster was in a good rhythm and on course for his maiden fifty of his IPL career until his stay at the crease was ended by Aiden Markram as Rishabh Pant stumped him out.
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However, Vaibhav’s IPL debut became one of the major talking points from the match between Rajasthan Royals and Lucknow Super Giants as fans, cricketers, and even spectators at the Jaipur lauded the youngster’s fearless approach and taking down LSG bowlers effortlessly with an extraordinary composure on the big stage.
Sundar Pichai lauds Vaibhav Suryavanshi
Google and Alphabet Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sundar Pichai was left massively awestruck by Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s IPL debut. He was particularly impressed with the youngster’s effort to go for a six on the first ball of his IPL career.
Taking to his X handle (formerly Twitter), Pichai shared the retweeted IPL’s video of Suryavanshi smashing a six against Shardul Thakur on the first ball of his IPL career and lauded ‘8th grader’ for his dream debut in cash-rich T20 league.
“Woke up to watch an 8th grader play in the IPL!!!! What a debut!” Pichai wrote on X.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai is a cricket enthusiast as he would often speak about it and share many posts on X handle regarding cricket. Pichai’s love for cricket was evident when he, along with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella bought a minority stake in The Hundred franchise London Spirit last year.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s dream IPL debut overshadowed by RR’s defeat
Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s IPL debut would have been more memorable if Rajasthan Royals had won the match against Lucknow Super Giants. RR, led by stand-in skipper Riyan Parag, suffered the 4th loss on the trot with a heartbreaking 2-run defeat to LSG.
With a target of 181, Rajasthan Royals failed to chase it down as they were restricted to 178/5 in 20 overs despite brilliant fifty by Yashasvi Jaiswal (74) and fiery innings by Riyan Parag (39) and Vaibhav (34). When RR needed 9 runs off 6 balls to win, LSG pacer Avesh Khan managed to defend those runs while taking a crucial wicket of Shimron Hetmyer to pull off a thrilling 2-run victory.
Avesh Khan was the adjudged Player of the match for his brilliant performance as he registered figures of 3/37 at an economy rate of 9.20 in his spell of four overs.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s career highlights
Vaibhav Suryavanshi was already shot to fame before making his IPL debut, when he slammed 58-ball century for India A against Australia A in a four-day match. The 14-year-old played a pivotal role in helping India U19 reach the final of Asia Cup U19, where they lost to Bangladesh.
However, Vaibhav impressed with his performance throughout the tournament, scoring 176 runs, including two fifties, at an average of 44.00 in five matches. The youngster made his senior team debut for Bihar in the Ranji Trophy match against Mumbai, where he became the youngest player to feature in the prestigious domestic tournament.
Suryavanshi impressed the Rajasthan Royals’ scouting team during the trials at the high performance centre last year. At the IPL 2025 Auction in Riyadh in November last year, the Bihar youngster triggered bidding wars between Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Capitals. After the price reached INR 1.1 crore, Delhi Capitals pulled out of the bid and Rajasthan Royals secured the services of Suryavanshi.
