Former Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner Lalit Modi has strongly dismissed a viral social media claim suggesting that Mumbai Indians’ owner Nita Ambani offered teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi an extravagant package to join the five-time champions.

The 15-year-old prodigy has been one of the biggest talking points of IPL 2026 following his explosive performances for Rajasthan Royals (RR). Amid the growing hype around the youngster, a bizarre rumor began circulating online claiming that Mumbai Indians had offered him INR 30 crore, a luxurious flat in Antilia, and even a private island in the Maldives to secure his services. 

However, Lalit Modi stepped in to shut down the speculation and clarified that the story has no truth in it. Retweeting the viral post, the former IPL boss rubbished the rumor and reminded fans that player movements in the IPL are governed strictly by league regulations.

“He will need to be traded. All these offer are immaterial – he will have to go thru Auction if released by @rajasthanroyals ,” Lalit Modi stated while reacting to the viral claim.

According to Modi, the move can happen only if both franchises agree to an official trade or if Rajasthan Royals release the youngster and he re-enters the auction pool. He emphasised that there is no scope for “backdoor deals” or unofficial agreements in the tournament.

“Yes he will command MORE MONEY THEN ANY OTHER CRICKET PLAYER ON EARTH. But these rumoured side offers have no place in official IPL RULES. ALL Sounds like fake news,” Lalit Modi added. 

The clarification from Lalit Modi has now effectively ended the online frenzy surrounding the alleged offer. While Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s meteoric rise has undoubtedly made him one of the most exciting young talents in world cricket, the rumors linking him to extravagant secret offers from Mumbai Indians have no truth to them. 

Meanwhile, the 15-year-old is having a dream IPL 2026 with the bat, scoring 680 runs with a strike rate of 242.85. He has led his side to the qualifier 2 with a stunning performance against Sunrisers Hyderabad in eliminator on May 27. 

Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) Global Director of Cricket, Tom Moody, shared his assessment of Gujarat Titans’ (GT) bowling attack after their disappointing outing against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Qualifier 1 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026.

RCB’s top-order batters came out aggressively against Gujarat’s pace spearheads Kagiso Rabada and Mohammed Siraj on Tuesday, putting the bowlers under immense pressure from the very beginning. The experienced fast-bowling duo, known for their hard-length bowling and ability to exploit movement off the surface, failed to make an impact on the flat Dharamsala pitch.

Speaking after the match, Moody explained that Gujarat’s bowling attack becomes predictable when there is no assistance from the pitch.

“When there’s zero movement in the surface, that’s when they’re vulnerable, because they don’t have the real extreme change-ups, you know, of pace and variety,” Tom Moody said on ESPNcricinfo TimeOut.

Moody compared Gujarat Titans’ situation to Sunrisers Hyderabad, stating that just like SRH’s batting struggles on difficult surfaces, GT’s bowling unit finds it hard to dominate on flat wickets.

“They do become predictable for that. It’s a bit like Sunrisers [Hyderabad]. As soon as Sunrisers are put on a surface that’s doing a bit, that batting line-up really struggles. So it’s the complete opposite. You get the ball just nipping or swinging a little bit, and Siraj and Rabada – all the very best to you, because you’re going to have a tough examination,” he continued.

However, Moody felt the flat Dharamsala wicket exposed Gujarat’s lack of variety in bowling, especially in terms of slower deliveries and deceptive pace variations.

“This is a very, very flat surface. And we saw that in the powerplay. And they don’t have the answers, they don’t have the huge change-ups of pace, the deception, they don’t have the [Lungi] Ngidi slower ball or something [making the batters] go reaching for it.”

He added that while GT’s bowlers do possess variations, those are not their primary strengths. Instead, their real weapon lies in using favourable conditions to create pressure through accuracy and movement.

“They’ve got them, but they’re not their trump card. Their trump card is when it’s doing a bit and they can hit that hard length and create issues both on inside and on the outside of the bat,” he concluded.

Gujarat Titans will now play the qualifier 2 against the winner between Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on May 29 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh PCA Stadium, Mullanpur. 

Former team owner Vijay Mallya took to X (formerly Twitter) to congratulate the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) for reaching the final of the 2026 Indian Premier League, after beating the Gujarat Titans by 92 runs in Qualifier 1 on Tuesday, May 26. 

The defending champions produced a batting masterclass by scoring 254 runs in the first innings, with skipper Rajat Patidar leading from the front. The right-handed batter went on to score 93 from just 33 deliveries, striking at 281.82. Following their exploits with the bat, the RCB bowling unit took care of the proceedings, bundling GT for a mere 162, with Jacob Duffy taking three wickets. 

Mallya was overjoyed by his former side reaching a second consecutive IPL final. He once again called RCB ‘Namma Dodda Simhagulu’, which roughly translates to ‘Our Big Lions’.

Many Many congratulations to RCB namma dodda Simhagulu for an emphatic victory in Dharamshala tonight. You roared loud like the Lions of Bengaluru and roared into the IPL final as defending champions,” Vijay Mallya posted on X (formerly Twitter). 

It is worth mentioning that, despite not being associated with the franchise for some years now, Mallya continues to support RCB from a distance and always takes to social media to congratulate them on their success. Royal Challengers fans, also show appreciation towards the former owner’s loyalty. 

When RCB won their first title last season, Mallya’s congratulatory post on X received more than 148,000 likes and six million impressions. 

The Royal Challengers are looking to become only the third side in IPL history to retain their title from last year. The Chennai Super Kings were the first team to do so, winning two titles in 2010 and 2011, with the Mumbai Indians joining them in the accomplishment by winning the trophies in 2019 and 2020. 

RCB now have a four-day gap before they take the field in Ahmedabad for the showpiece final on Sunday, May 31.