There were three Indian left-handed top-order batters running riot on Saturday (April 25, 2026) — Vaibhav Suryavanshi for Rajasthan Royals; Ishan Kishan and Abhishek Sharma for Sunrisers Hyderabad.

The trio engaged in a prolonged game of one-upmanship, dazzling an electric crowd at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium with their batting flair.

The opening riposte came from Suryavanshi’s blade. The 15-year-old, banking on his outrageous gift of timing, blazed away to a 36-ball hundred as Royals thundered to 228 for six after being inserted.

Royals’ seemingly mammoth target, though, couldn’t withstand the combined counter-punch from Kishan and Abhishek. Their 132-run second-wicket partnership laid the foundation for SRH’s emphatic five-wicket win in IPL 2026 — its sixth consecutive triumph against the Royals.

Playing no small part in SRH’s win was a sub-par fielding effort from the home team. Even the ever-reliable Ravindra Jadeja dropped an offering from Abhishek.

Unbothered by all of it, Kishan and Abhishek unleashed mayhem early on as they cut and slashed at anything remotely wide of the stumps to take SRH to 89 for one in the PowerPlay.

The onslaught persisted into the middle overs, against spin and pace alike. Royals had a glimmer of hope when SRH lost both Kishan and Abhishek by the 13th over. But Heinrich Klaasen and Nitish Kumar were quick to extinguish that, as the visiting team coasted home with nine balls to spare.

Earlier, Suryavanshi enthralled the home crowd with an assortment of murderous pulls, sweetly-timed lofted drives and disdainful flicks.

He ignited his innings by walloping pacer Praful Hinge for four back-to-back sixes in the first over. There was an unmissable air of grudge-settling in that onslaught — Praful had, after all, dismissed Suryavanshi for a golden duck in the reverse fixture.

Suryavanshi sizzled on, before being dismissed right after he got to his hundred. As he trudged back to the dugout, an adoring Jaipur crowd offered him a standing ovation — a gesture that looks set to be a routine exercise for them in the years to come.

Unfortunately for the Royals’ faithful, the game was to go downhill for them from there on.