IPL Pulse: Existential, but make it cricket

Good morning,

Woke up with an existential crisis, like the rest of us? What were you doing at 15? And how stunned are you, really, at what's achievable when you haven't even fully grown into your body? The answers don't matter. All we can do is admire.

Here's your escape into Cricbuzz Pulse, your 2-min morning scan of the IPL universe.

Last night in five lines

1. Jofra Archer began with a snorter that handed Phil Salt a golden duck.

2. Virat Kohli went at 200 SR, then got done by a (wild shot and a) googly from Ravi Bishnoi.

3. Rajat Patidar flew to a rapid fifty, and with Venkatesh Iyer the Impact Sub, dragged RCB to 201/8.

4. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi stopped clocks and hit everything in sight during 26-ball 78 before holing out to Krunal Pandya, who btw also got Shimron Hetmyer with a bouncer next ball.

5. Dhruv Jurel's 81* off 43, took RR home, kept the unbeaten streak alive, and snapped RCB's.

Oh, that happened

Remember when Sooryavanshi swatted away the first ever ball he faced from Jasprit Bumrah for a six? This time, he began with a couple of boundaries off Bhuvneshwar Kumar (he of over 200 IPL wickets). Then it was Josh Hazlewood's turn. Surely, all the extra bounce and immaculate lengths and perhaps the reputation are going to cloud the 15-year-old's mind? Nope. Three boundaries in a row. The fourth ball, you ask? A giant six.

Pulse awards

The what-version-of-cricket-is-this award goes to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for seemingly believing that the ball belongs in the stands.

The breaking-new-grounds award goes to Shimron Hetmyer for getting bounced out by a left-arm spinner.

The not-doing-their-job award goes to Venkatesh Iyer's flowing locks, which kept getting in his eyeline and still couldn't stop him scoring at 193.

The played-the-long-game award goes to the Guwahati crowd for backing RCB so hard it felt like a home game to them (and ended like one).

The against-the-grain award goes to Josh Hazlewood for being the first high-profile frontline pacer to be both Australian and fit to bowl in this IPL.

Talking point

Rajat Patidar's innings was less about numbers and more about timing his role. He walked in at 45/2, crawled to 18 off 20, his slowest start in years as RCB kept losing wickets. Then, at 27 off 26 with 125/7, he flipped gears without fuss, taking 36 off his last 14 to push them to 201 from 94/6, showing exactly what a No. 4 is meant to do. Across the season, he has ticked off every brief: early acceleration against SRH, middle-overs push against CSK and now a recovery act with a late surge.

Who's saying what

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi said he was trying to "play the ball, not the bowler" when asked about taking on Bumrah and Hazlewood. Riyan Parag called the win "clinical" and admitted it "didn't really feel like a home game, but we were really prepared." On Sooryavanshi, he added that he loves eating and batting, which tracks for a 15-year-old. Dhruv Jurel said he is left "shocked" every time he watches him, adding, "you don't understand how he hits like that."

Rajat Patidar felt RCB getting to 202 after losing wickets was a "positive sign" and that "lot of errors" will happen, it's important to get over them.

Stat Snack

This was RCB's first defeat in a designated away game in a group fixture since losing to KKR at the Eden Gardens in 2024.

What's the latest gossip?

Birdies say a few senior batters all around India are already checking their contracts and egos after Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's latest stunt, with quiet whispers about whether he should even be allowed the same bat. "Whatever happened to the half-pant, half-ticket theory," a deeply concerned, definitely real source close to a few senior cricketers said.

Tonight's watchlist

Two matches. PBKS host SRH (hoping Abhishek doesn't come off like the last two times) and then later in the evening, CSK host DC in Chepauk, where they have lost their last six matches. Will Dhoni, Brevis play?

Reckless prediction for tonight's match

It will be more pleasant in New Chandigarh at 3.30 pm than in Chennai at 7.30 pm.