Sooryavanshi's stunning 93 keeps RR's playoffs hopes alive

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's scintillating 93 eclipsed Mitchell Marsh's 96 as the Rajasthan Royals kept their knockouts hopes alive in IPL 2026 with a commanding seven-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants on Tuesday. The teenage sensation smashed 10 towering sixes in a breathtaking 38-ball assault that powered RR's chase of 221. Dhruv Jurel smashed an unbeaten 53 off 38 as Royals romped home with five balls to spare.

Brief scores: Lucknow Super Giants 220/5 in 20 overs (Mitchell Marsh 96 off 57, Josh Inglis 60 off 29, Rishabh Pant 35 off 23; Yash Raj Punjab 2-35) lost to Rajasthan Royals 225/3 in 19.1 overs (Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 93 off 38, Dhruv Jurel 53* off 38, Yashasvi Jaiswal 43 off 23; Mohsin Khan 1-31) by 7 wickets.

Yashasvi Jaiswal was the aggressor in the 75-run opening stand, kickstarting the chase with a hat-trick of boundaries off Akash Singh. Sooryavanshi announced himself with a ramp for six off Prince Yadav. After losing Jaiswal, Sooryavanshi unleashed mayhem: a 26-run over off Akash Singh featuring 6, 4, 0, 4, 6, wd, wd, 4. He raced to a 23-ball half-century before dispatching Digvesh Rathi and Prince again.

Alongside Jurel, Sooryavanshi kept the assault relentless. Mayank's third over disappeared for 29 runs. Mohsin Khan finally deceived the teenager with a slower ball, denying him a century. Sooryavanshi departed for 93, leaving RR needing 41 from 36 deliveries.

Marsh, Inglis get LSG off to a flier

Marsh delivered again following his 90 against CSK, combining with Inglis to lay the platform. Inglis smashed 49 off 22 balls in the Powerplay. He brought up a rapid half-century against Yash Raj Punja before falling in the ninth over.

RR make death-overs comeback despite Marsh heroics

Marsh became the first LSG batter to aggregate 500-plus runs in successive IPL seasons, bringing up a second successive half-century off 25 balls. Rishabh Pant struggled initially before finding the fence. At 182/2, LSG looked poised for 250, but disciplined death bowling restricted them to 220. Jofra Archer removed both set batters in the 20th over.

Already eliminated, LSG host Punjab Kings on Saturday. RR head to Mumbai with their fate in their own hands.