Kagiso Rabada. believes Rajasthan Royals Youngster Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s brilliant IPL 2026 campaign is built on fearless cricket, quick reflexes and an ability to read bowlers earlier than most players of his age.The Gujarat Titans fast bowler praised the 15-year-old after Qualifier 2 on Friday, where Suryavanshi’s brilliant 96 went in vain as GT chased down 215 to win by seven wickets and book their place in the IPL 2026 final against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.After his 97 in the eliminator, Suryavanshi once again lit up the contest with a 47-ball 96. The teenager signed off the season with 776 runs, ending his campaign currently at the top of the run-scoring charts, though Shabman Gul There is still a chance to overtake him in Sunday’s final. Suryavanshi also missed out on a second consecutive century after his dismissal. Rabada..Speaking after the match, Rabada admitted that Suryavanshi is surprising everyone with his maturity and attacking style.“He just amazes everybody who watches the game. He’s got such quick hands, and he picks up lengths quickly. He’s got so much energy.”The South African said that the youngster’s fearless mentality is the main reason for his success this season.“When you’re young, you have so much energy and no fear, and that’s exactly what he’s shown, no fear and just a natural instinct for the game that allows him to do what he does.”Rabada felt that Suryavanshi’s performance had already moved beyond discussions about age.“At this stage, you throw age out the window; it doesn’t matter how old he is. It’s amazing what he’s doing.”Earlier, Gujarat’s pace attack had put Rajasthan under pressure. Muhammad Siraj And Rabada is hitting fast. However, Suryavanshi fought back once again, scoring a valuable partnership. Ravindra Jadejawho remained not out on 45, as Rajasthan posted 214/6.Rabada, who finished with figures of 2/35 from his four overs, admitted that Gujarat were not at their best with the ball despite restricting Rajasthan to below what he believed to be an even score.“The plan was to play our strengths back, like we usually do, and hopefully get early wickets. We got two early wickets, but then they fought back, and we missed our mark by bowling too many short balls, where we probably wanted to challenge them a bit more.”The fast bowler said GT never felt out of contention despite Suryavanshi’s counter-attack.“They got away from us a bit, but we knew we weren’t completely out of it because we knew we could still get wickets. By the 19th over we were in control.”Rabada also acknowledged the challenge Rashid Khan faced at a batting-friendly level and felt Gujarat could have restricted Rajasthan to a lower total.“It was quite difficult for Rashid (Khan) to come on that wicket and bowl as a spinner against some real power hitters. We probably felt 180-190 was what we should have restricted him to, barring the dropped catch (of Surya Vanshi).”GT eventually made light work of the chase through a brilliant century from skipper Shibman Gill and an opening stand of 167 with Sai Sudharsan reaching the target with eight balls to spare.Rabada also praised his bowling partnership with Siraj, saying the Indian pacer’s intensity and ability to build pressure has been crucial for Gujarat throughout the season.“Sirraj is my partner this season. We are just trying to work as a partnership. If he is pushing from the other end, hopefully I can do the same, and that’s how we get wickets.”“Everybody knows him. He’s got a lot of heart, and he’s got a lot of skill. It’s great to bowl with him (because) it increases your chances of getting a wicket because there’s someone at the other end putting just as much pressure, if not more.”
