Kohli to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi: 'Ek Bihari sab par bhari' after IPL 2026 final
Synopsis
Virat Kohli's post-final chat with 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has gone viral — and it wasn't a pep talk, it was a passing of the torch. With 776 runs, the Orange Cap, MVP, Emerging Player, Super Striker and a record 72 sixes, the Bihar teen is no longer the IPL's curiosity. He's its centre of gravity.
Key Takeaways
Virat Kohli advised Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to stay focused and ignore outside noise after the IPL 2026 final.
RCB beat Gujarat Titans by five wickets at the Narendra Modi Stadium , Ahmedabad, to win back-to-back titles.
The 15-year-old Sooryavanshi finished with 776 runs and the Orange Cap .
He won five awards : MVP, Emerging Player, Super Striker (strike rate 237.31 ) and Super Sixes ( 72 sixes ).
Kohli signed off with the line, “Ek Bihari sab par bhari.”
Virat Kohli had a quiet but pointed message for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi moments after the IPL 2026 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday — stay grounded, tune out the noise, and keep climbing. The exchange between the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) stalwart and the 15-year-old Rajasthan Royals prodigy, captured on video and shared by RCB on their social channels, has since gone viral.
What Kohli told the teenager
In the clip, Kohli is heard praising Sooryavanshi's work ethic and self-belief while urging him to filter out outside chatter. “You have to keep going higher from here. Whatever you've achieved is the result of your hard work and belief. Don't pay attention to who is saying what. Just focus on your batting and yourself. Ek Bihari sab par bhari,” the former RCB captain told the youngster.
The backdrop to the chat
The conversation followed RCB's five-wicket win over the Gujarat Titans in the final, which handed the franchise back-to-back IPL crowns. Notably, this is not the first interaction between the two — earlier in the season, Kohli had signed Sooryavanshi's cap after the left-hander tore into the RCB bowling at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati.
A breakout season for the books
Even though Rajasthan Royals missed out on the title, Sooryavanshi walked away as the individual story of the tournament, collecting five awards at the post-match presentation. He finished as the leading run-scorer with 776 runs to claim the Orange Cap, and was also named Most Valuable Player and Emerging Player of the Season.
The teenager added the Super Striker award after maintaining a striking strike rate of 237.31, and bagged the Super Sixes award by clearing the ropes a record 72 times through the campaign.
Why the moment matters
Mentor-to-protégé moments in Indian cricket rarely play out this publicly, and Kohli's choice of words — invoking Sooryavanshi's Bihar roots — landed as both endorsement and a nudge to stay hungry. With the IPL window closed, attention now shifts to whether the selectors fast-track the teenager into India's white-ball pipeline ahead of the next domestic season.
Point of View
Even as Jharkhand and Bihar have produced match-winners. The bigger question is whether the BCCI's selection apparatus can resist over-exposing a 15-year-old whose strike rate and six-hitting are already outliers in senior cricket. The history of Indian teen prodigies — Prithvi Shaw being the cautionary tale — suggests the next 18 months matter more than this trophy haul.
NationPress
12 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Virat Kohli tell Vaibhav Sooryavanshi after the IPL 2026 final?
Kohli urged the 15-year-old to keep aiming higher, ignore outside opinions, and focus solely on his batting. He ended the conversation with the line, “Ek Bihari sab par bhari,” praising Sooryavanshi's work ethic and self-belief.
How did Vaibhav Sooryavanshi perform in IPL 2026?
Sooryavanshi was the tournament's leading run-scorer with 776 runs and won the Orange Cap. He also picked up the Most Valuable Player, Emerging Player of the Season, Super Striker and Super Sixes awards — five honours in all.
Who won the IPL 2026 final?
Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the IPL 2026 final, beating Gujarat Titans by five wickets at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. It was RCB's second consecutive IPL title.
How many sixes did Vaibhav Sooryavanshi hit in IPL 2026?
Sooryavanshi hit a record 72 sixes during the IPL 2026 season, which earned him the Super Sixes award. He also maintained a strike rate of 237.31, the highest in the tournament.
Had Kohli and Sooryavanshi interacted before the final?
Yes. Earlier in the season, Kohli had signed Sooryavanshi's cap after the teenager smashed the RCB bowling all around the park at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati.
