Dale Steyn couldn’t stop marvelling at Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s audacity when the 15-year-old took down Indian pace great Jasprit Bumrah in a show of raw strokeplay during last evening’s Indian Premier League 2026 fixture between Rajasthan Royals and the Mumbai Indians in Guwahati. Sooryavanshi smoked Bumrah for a first-ball six, and followed it up with another two balls later, winning the battle one-sided. Although a sample size of five deliveries isn’t ideal for determining a winner, the fact that Vaibhav made the best bowler in the world think speaks volumes about his impact.
For Steyn, Sooryavanshi’s fearlessness stood out. 10 years into his international career, few would have rattled Bumrah the way Sooryavanshi did last evening, as the India pacer looked short of ideas. It’s the fourth game in a row that Bumrah has gone wicketless, but by the end of the match, all they could talk about was how mercilessly Sooryavanshi and his opening partner, Yashasvi Jaiswal, batted.
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“I think that's what he's done. I mean, honestly, he's created and instilled the fear into bowlers that he's going to hit you for boundaries. That delivery from Bumrah. That's in the slot. That's so rare of Bumrah. So even the great Bumrah is thinking in the back of his mind: 'don't get it wrong; because if I get it wrong, this guy's going to hit me for six’,” Steyn said about Bumrah’s first ball to Sooryavanshi on ESPNcricinfo's TimeOut show.
“I feel, if you think like that, more often than not, you do get it wrong. You can see even when he's hit him for six, he [Bumrah] almost started to laugh afterwards and then go, 'I knew that was going to happen if I got it wrong'. And that's exactly what happened.
'This kid is not scared, man'
Fantasy match-ups remain just that – imaginary – and only Steyn can answer how he, at his peak, would have bowled to Sooryavanshi. But what’s the guarantee he would have succeeded? No bowler has escaped Sooryavanshi’s wrath. If last year it was Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj and Ishant Sharma, this time it was Bumrah, the best fast bowler world cricket has to offer. Perhaps in a full 20-over contest, the outcome might have differed slightly, but even then, one thing about Sooryavanshi that would remain unchanged is his approach – unflinching and unfazed.
“And this kid's not scared, man. If you miss a half-volley, he's going to hit you out of the ground. So drag your length back and hit a good length, and you might be on the money with him. Miss and you're travelling the distance. It doesn't matter who you are, Bumrah or Joe Average. You know, so that's fantastic batting,” added the former South Africa pace great.