The eleventh edition of India’s flagship T20 tournament, the Indian Premier League, drew to a close on Sunday with Chennai Super Kings defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight wickets in front of a full house at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai to clinch their third title.
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Like every other season, IPL-2018 was witness to some scintillating performances by players both young and old, as 19,901 runs were scored and 720 wickets taken over the course of its sixty matches.
IPL 2018: जीत के बाद इन खिलाड़ियों की पत्नियां फूला नहीं समा पा रही है, देखिये फोटो
The fours, the sixes and the dot balls apart, one thing that stood out about this particular season was that none of the two finalists have had an easy road to the final, since as many as five teams stayed in contention for two playoff berths (after SRH and CSK had already qualified) till the very last round of the league phase, and the gulf separating the league toppers from the team finishing bottom was a mere eight points.
तो इस खिलाड़ी ने जीते है इस आईपीएल में सबसे ज्यादा कैश प्राइज अवॉर्ड
What it did was, it made the task of picking the team of the season doubly difficult. But we have embraced the challenge and compiled a line-up comprising eleven impactful players who took the tournament by storm, albeit at the cost of leaving out some equally talented players for the sake of the right combination.
THE OPENERS
1. K.L RAHUL (KINGS XI PUNJAB)
Earmarked as the future of Indian batting, the twenty six year-old was the leading run-scorer for Kings XI Punjab this season as he amassed 659 runs from fourteen games at an average of 54.91 and a strike-rate of 158.41 (fifth best in the entire tournament).
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Balancing caution with aggression in equal measure, Rahul himself admitted to have adopted a more sedate approach to his batting as compared to previous seasons, as he looked to occupy the crease till the very end and hit only the lose deliveries for boundaries, without taking too many risks.
Stats: Matches 14, Runs 659, Average 54.91, S/R 158.41, HS 95*, six 50s.
Most memorable performance: In the second match of IPL-2018 between Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab at the PCA Stadium, Mohali, Rahul smashed the fastest fifty in the history of the IPL by bringing up his half-century in just fourteen balls.
2. Sunil Narine (Kolkata Knight Riders)
When Sunil Narine—the man with the mohawk from Trinidad—burst on to the scene in 2012 as a mystery spinner for the then Gautam Gambhir-led Kolkata Knight Riders, we had very little inkling that almost six years later, the same man would find himself topping the charts for the highest strike-rate (only batsmen with minimum 300 runs considered) of the season. His ability to exploit the field restrictions for the first six overs, coupled with his unflinching bravado against spinners, make him a formidable batsman in the shortest format of the game.
On the bowling front, he fared reasonably well, taking 17 wickets from 16 games @ 27.47 runs apiece and an economy of 7.65, while finishing as the joint fifth-highest wicket-taker of the tournament. This was a good enough performance—especially considering the fact that he has had to alter his bowling action after he was reported for a suspected bowling action during the Pakistan Super League earlier this year.
Shane Watson (man of the match in the final), Jos Buttler and Ambati Rayudu, too, could have made the opening slot. But with Narine, the left-hander opening the batting alongside Rahul, the right-hander, it allows us to play an extra batsman in the middle order and lends the much-needed balance to the side.
Stats: Batting: Matches 16, Runs 357, Average 22.31, S/R 189.89, HS 75, two 50s.
Bowling: Wickets 17, Average 27.47, Economy 7.65, BBM 3/18.
Most memorable performance: An all-round display of 4-0-30-1 and 50 off 19 balls (4 fours and 5 sixes) against Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata, which got KKR’s IPL-2018 campaign off to a good start.
THE MIDDLE ORDER
3. Kane Williamson (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
The New Zealand and Sunrisers Hyderabad captain finished the tournament as the highest run-getter, as his 17 innings accounted for 735 runs @ 52.50 and a strike-rate of 142.44, including eight fifties.
Having taken over the reins of the side from Australia’s David Warner, after the latter was banned from the cash-rich league following his alleged involvement in the infamous ball-tampering scandal, Williamson emerged as the batting mainstay of SRH and silenced all those cynics who never really rated him as a T20 batsman.
Stats: Matches 17, Runs 735, Average 52.50, S/R 142.44, HS 84, eight 50s.
Most memorable performance: A classy 84 off 51 balls against Chennai Super Kings at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad. Chasing 183 for victory, the SRH captain’s effort went in vain as CSK won the tight contest by just four runs.
4. Ambati Rayudu (Chennai Super Kings)
Having plied his trade for Mumbai Indians for the eight preceding seasons, Ambati Rayudu was roped in by Chennai Super Kings at the auction to add more strength to a batting line-up that already comprised the likes of M.S Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Faf du Plessis, Dwayne Bravo, Shane Watson et cetera. His captain, M.S. Dhoni’s decision to use him as an opener not only helped him enjoy the most prolific season of his IPL career, but also proved to be one of the masterstrokes which laid the foundation for a CSK triumph in the competition.
IPL में सीएसके के लिए रनों का अंबार लगाने वाले इस खिलाड़ी के पास नहीं है खुद का मोबाइल
Even at 33, Rayudu’s impressive fitness levels and ability to switch batting gears almost effortlessly make him an incumbent member of the current CSK setup.
Stats: Matches 16, Runs 602, Average 43, S/R 149.75, HS 100*, three fifties, one hundred.
Most memorable performance: His maiden IPL hundred (100* from 62 balls) which helped CSK script an eight-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in Pune.
5. Rishabh Pant (Delhi Daredevils)
Rishabh Pant has always had the talent—oodles and bundles of it—but lacked the temperament to back it up. Thanks to his astounding form with the bat for Delhi Daredevils this season, he finally seems to have made amends.
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A powerful striker who can play shots all around the ground, the twenty-year old wicket-keeper/batsman’s evolution as a cricketer was one of the few takeaways for his franchise from an otherwise lacklustre season.
Stats: Matches 14, Runs 684, Average 52.61, S/R 173.60, HS 128*, five 50s, one 100.
Most memorable performance: Coming in to bat with the Daredevils reeling at 21/2 against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Feroz Shah Kotla, the Delhi southpaw produced one of the best knocks in IPL history as he notched 128* off just 64 balls to help his side post a competitive 187/5 at the end of their allotted 20 overs. Eventually, the hundred ended on a losing cause as fifties from both Shikhar Dhawan and Kane Williamson got SRH across the finish line with seven balls to spare.
THE FINISHERS
6. Dinesh Karthik (Kolkata Knight Riders)
Dinesh Karthik’s resurgence—both in limited-overs international cricket and in the IPL—is one of the best things that has happened in Indian cricket of late.
The thirty two-year old keeper/batsman’s appointment as the new skipper of a rebooted KKR outfit had raised many an eyebrow, but his last over heroics in the Nidahas Trophy final against Bangladesh was a glaring testimony to his new-found penchant for finishing off games—a role he would later reprise for KKR as well on numerous occasions.
His exemplary leadership and calming influence on the large pool of young players in the KKR squad were instrumental in taking KKR to the playoffs.
Stats: Matches 16, Runs 498, Average 49.80, S/R 147.77, HS 52, two fifties.
Most memorable performance: In a must-win game for KKR against Kings XI Punjab at Indore, the KKR captain rose to the occasion and took advantage of the short boundaries by bringing up his fifty in just 22 balls and setting up the stage for a famous KKR victory.
7. M.S. Dhoni, captain and wicket-keeper (Chennai Super Kings)
‘Age is just a number’, and who exemplifies this adage better than ‘Captain Cool’ a.k.a M.S. Dhoni? Returning to the familiar and congenial milieu of the CSK franchise after a two-year hiatus, the former Indian captain batted the way that he had not batted for a long time, scoring 455 runs from 15 innings @ 75.83 and a strike-rate of 150.66, with the typical M.S.D swagger which characterized his batting back during his long-haired days.
Using the crease to good effect and finding a good bat swing with a lighter bat this time around, the CSK skipper smacked 30 sixes—the joint sixth highest along with AB de Villiers. He was brilliant behind the stumps too, effecting 14 dismissals (11 catches and 3 stumpings).
The fact that CSK functioned like a well-oiled machine throughout the tournament owed a lot to Dhoni’s cerebral faculties, and there certainly cannot be any better tidings for Indian cricket than his return to peak form ahead of next year’s World Cup in England.
Stats: Matches 16, Runs 455, Average 75.83, S/R 150.66, HS 79*, three 50s.
Most memorable performance: A well-calculated 70* off 34 balls (1 four and 7 sixes) against Virat Kohli’s RCB at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore to ensure a win for CSK in a dramatic finish.
THE BOWLERS
8. Rashid Khan (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
He might only be nineteen years old, but he has already established his status as an IPL veteran! An extremely wily customer to get away with, Rashid’s greatest strength lies in his uncanny ability to spin the ball both ways and bowl an intimidating wicket-to-wicket line with a quickish action for days on end, which make it difficult for batsmen to pick him, let alone hit him for boundaries.
Widely hailed as the finest spinner in limited-overs cricket at present, Rashid’s latent talent for batting came to the fore when he belted a quickfire 34* off 10 balls in the second qualifier at the Eden Gardens after coming in to bat at eight, which paved the way for an unlikely win for SRH against Kolkata Knight Riders.
Stats: Matches 17, Wickets 21, Bowling average 21.80, Economy 6.73, BBM 3/19.
Most memorable performance: Potent contributions with both bat (34* from 10 balls; 2 fours and 4 sixes) and ball (3/19) to win SRH the game almost single-handedly and dash KKR’s hopes of making it to the final in Qualifier-2 at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
9. Andrew Tye (Kings XI Punjab)
The off-cutter, the slower ball bouncer, the knuckle ball—you name them and you have them all in Andrew Tye’s repertoire. The first Australian to win the Purple Cap (prize for the highest wicket-taker) in the eleven-year history of the IPL, the thirty one-year old pacer’s consistent performance with the ball throughout the season is bound to raise his stock price in the future.
Stats: Matches 14, Wickets 24, Bowling average 18.66, Economy 8, BBM 4/16.
Most memorable performance: 4/34 against Rajasthan Royals at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur—an effort which restricted RR to 158 in 20 overs. KXIP, however, ended up losing the game by 15 runs. This was the first of the Western Australian’s three four-wicket hauls during the season—a new record in the IPL.
10. Umesh Yadav (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
Every time Umesh Yadav ran in with the new ball in hand for RCB this season, you invariably knew that a wicket was lurking around the corner. With the World Cup being just a year away, Yadav’s wicket-taking spree in the recently concluded IPL may in due time turn out to be the thrust that he needed to put his limited-overs international career back on track.
Stats: Matches 14, Wickets 20, Bowling average 20.90, Economy 7.86, BBM 3/23.
Most memorable performance: A hostile spell during the Powerplay to wreck KXIP’s top order and return with figures of 3/23 at the Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore in Match 48.
11. Jasprit Bumrah (Mumbai Indians)
Entrusted with the responsibility of spearheading MI’s much-vaunted bowling attack, the twenty-four-year-old paceman was at his lethal best this season as he bagged 17 scalps from 14 games to finish as the fifth-highest wicket taker of the tournament.
Called in to bowl during the two most vital periods of a T20 innings—the Powerplay and the death overs—Bumrah’s forte of marrying pace with precision and firing in incessant yorkers meant he hardly gave away easy runs when the opposition batsmen were trying to go all hammer and tongs against him, as is evidenced by his miserly economy rate of 6.88—the second best among bowlers with more than twenty overs to their name. In what panned out as a largely unforgettable season for the three-time champions, Bumrah’s indispensability in the bowling department was one of the few bright spots.
10 आईपीएल बाद आखिरकार 11 वें सीजन में बनाया रोहित शर्मा ने यह खराब रिकॉर्ड
Stats: Matches 14, Wickets 17, Bowling average 21.88, Economy 6.88, BBM 3/15.
Most memorable performance: A match-winning performance of 3/15 from four overs against Kings XI Punjab in Mumbai, whilst all the other MI bowlers went at 8.72 runs per over.
Twelfth Man: Andre Russell (Kolkata Knight Riders)
The thirty-year-old Jamaican’s prowess as an all-rounder needs no elaborate explication. One of the two players to have been retained by KKR (the other being Sunil Narine), Russell reposed the franchise’s faith in him by putting up a stellar all-round show, which saw him pile up 316 runs @ 28.72 and a strike-rate of 184.79 and take 13 wickets from 16 games, to play a key role in propelling his side to the playoffs.
Russell’s batting embodies the transition that the game of cricket has undergone over the years—from being the graceful game that it once used to be to becoming the power-game that it is today. His potency as a hard-hitter, combined with his canny knack of breaking partnerships and electric athleticism in the field, make him a priceless asset for any side in the world of T20 cricket.
Stats: Batting: Matches 16, Runs 316, Average 28.72, S/R 184.79, HS 88*, one 50.
Bowling: Wickets 13, Average 27.30, Economy 9.38, BBM 3/31.
Most memorable performance: Eleven—the number of sixes that came off Russell’s bat against Chennai Super Kings at the M.A Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai (the solitary game to be hosted by that venue in IPL-2018) during his whirlwind knock of 88* from 36 balls which helped KKR reach 202/6 in 20 overs. In the end, the hosts got home with only one ball to spare, thanks largely to an elegant Sam Billings fifty.