"I was trying to reach close to Delhi cricket when I was 14 years old" - Aakash Chopra lauds Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's century in RR's IPL 2025 win vs GT

Former India player Aakash Chopra has lauded Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for scoring a match-winning century in the Rajasthan Royals' (RR) IPL 2025 clash against the Gujarat Titans (GT). The cricketer-turned-commentator noted that he was still trying to get into the Delhi side when he was as old as Sooryavanshi.

GT set RR a 210-run target in Match 47 of IPL 2025 in Jaipur on Monday, April 28. Sooryavanshi smashed 101 runs off 38 deliveries in the chase to help the hosts register an eight-wicket win with 25 deliveries to spare.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener praised Sooryavanshi for creating history as a 14-year-old.

"He scored a hundred off just 35 balls, the second-fastest in IPL history, and the fastest by an Indian. A kid younger than him has not scored a hundred in men's T20 history. What have you done at 14 years of age? Is tournament ka vaibhav badha diya (he has increased this tournament's grandeur)," Chopra said (0:01).

"His name is Sooryavanshi, he also did a job like that. You might ask yourself what you were doing when you were 14 years old. I was trying to reach close to Delhi cricket when I was 14 years old, and this kid is not just scoring runs in the IPL, he scored a hundred, and it was unimaginable the way he scored it," he added.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi reached his century off 35 balls. Only Chris Gayle, who scored a 30-ball hundred for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru against the Pune Warriors in 2013, has reached the milestone quicker in the Indian Premier League.

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"He was taken for 30 runs in his first over" - Aakash Chopra on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's assault on Karim Janat in RR's IPL 2025 win vs GT

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi struck seven fours and 11 sixes during his 101-run knock. [P/C: iplt20.com]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi took virtually all the Gujarat Titans bowlers to the cleaners, with Karim Janat feeling the brunt of his willow.

"When he started hitting sixes, he kept hitting them, whether it was against Ishant Sharma, Prasidh Krishna or Rashid Khan. Karim Janat has a decent T20 career, and he was taken for 30 runs in his first over. When Washington Sundar came, everyone said atisundar Vaibhav. His batting was absolutely incredible," he said (1:40).

The analyst appreciated the youngster for playing the ball and not the bowler.

"We talk about the bat swing and the fearless approach, but the thing I liked the most was that he was just playing the ball. Many times, when you come to a huge stage, you see the bowler - (Mohammed) Siraj, Krishna, Karamati (Rashid) Khan. He is not thinking about it at all. He is watching the ball, and he hits it for a six wholeheartedly and with full power if he feels he can do so," Chopra elaborated.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi added 166 runs for the first wicket with Yashasvi Jaiswal. The latter remained unbeaten on a 40-ball 70, a knock studded with nine fours and two sixes.