The 12th edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) has finally done and dusted. Mumbai Indians (MI) won a nail-biting game on a last-ball thriller in the final against the defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and lifted their fourth IPL title.
CSK did pretty well and restricted Mumbai Indians to a below-par total of 149 but after having a blistering knock of Shane Watson, they failed to chase the target and lost the game on the final ball of the match.
This year’s IPL has witnessed many things, from super over the finish to Mankading. Along with these, there were some sparkling performances as well – be it batsmen or bowlers. Here is the best-combined XI of this season.
1. David Warner (Matches - 12, Runs - 692, Average - 79.20)
David Warner missed last year’s IPL due to his ban over the ball-tampering controversy. However, this year he started with a bang. Despite being out of-of cricket for one long year, he didn’t look out of form.
Having started with a 53-ball 85 against Kolkata Knight Riders, he made a successful opening pair with Jonny Bairstow. Sunrisers Hyderabad won many of their games on the back of this opening partnership. He amassed 692 runs at an average of 79.20 in 12 matches and won the Orange Cap in the season as well.
2. KL Rahul (Matches - 14, Runs - 593, Average - 53.90)
KL Rahul has emerged as a wonderful opener in this season for Kings XI Punjab. Earlier, his position was questioned but he responded pretty well and helped his side many times to register convincing wins.
He scored 593 runs in 14 matches at an average of 53.90. His prolific batting show in the IPL helped him to earn a place in India’s 15-member World Cup squad.
3. Shreyas Iyer (Matches - 16, Runs - 463, Average - 30.86)
The youngest captain in this IPL season was Shreyas Iyer; who successfully led Delhi Capitals to the playoffs. Along with his captaincy, his batting was also praised in the middle order. He scored 463 runs in 16 matches at an average of 30.86 despite playing most of the matches on a slow pitch.
4. Rishabh Pant (Matches - 16, Runs - 488, Average - 37.53)
Rishabh Pant has been in a formidable form for the last couple of months. He continued his smashing form in the IPL as well. His performance made everyone believe that he is a sure selection in the upcoming World Cup. However, his non-selection and Dinesh Karthik’s selection as a backup raised many questions.
The wicket-keeper batsman smashed 488 runs in 16 games for Delhi Capitals with a brilliant strike-rate of 162.66. His blistering 78 against Mumbai Indians is one of his best innings of the season.
5. MS Dhoni (C & WK) (Matches - 15, Runs - 416, Average - 83.20)
MS Dhoni is best known for his finishing style in the World Cricket – be it IPL or in International level. Though last year he was out of form in the blue jersey but this year has come with lots of great knocks from him or India as well as his IPL team, Chennai Super Kings.
In this year, Chennai’s batting was seen struggling in the top order which made Dhoni play cautiously. However, he played stable as well as quickfire knocks in nearly all the games he played. He scored 416 runs in 15 matches at an average of 83.20. He will try to keep this form intact in the World Cup as well.
6. Andre Russell (Matches - 14, Runs - 510, Average - 56.66, Strike-rate - 204.81, Wickets - 11)
Andre Russell played the key role for Kolkata Knight Riders. He was the only one who was consistent throughout the tournament and took his side to the finish line from a hopeless stage many times.
He smashed 52 maximums and batted at a strike-rate of over 200. After being banned from the national team for a year, his IPL performance helped him to get selected in the national team or the upcoming ICC World Cup. Along with the bat, he scalped 11 wickets as well in the tournament.
7. Hardik Pandya (Matches - 16, Runs - 402, Average - 44.66, Strike-rate - 191.42, Wickets - 14)
This season of IPL went pretty well for India all-rounder Hardik Pandya. He played crucial knocks for his side Mumbai Indians, especially in the death overs. In the 16 matches, he scored 402 runs at an average of 44.66. His all-around performance saved his side many times in this season and he will be a vital cog for India in the upcoming mega event.
8. Shreyas Gopal (Matches - 14, Wickets - 20, Average - 17.35, Economy - 7.22)
Shreyas Gopal’s dream run continued in this year’s IPL as well despite being Rajasthan Royals’ disappointing season. His bowling troubled many great batsmen like Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers etc. and he was successful to dismiss them.
He picked up 20 wickets which included a hat-trick and he also played a few useful cameos in the lower order with the bat as well.
9. Kagiso Rabada (Matches - 12, Wickets - 25, Average - 14.72, Economy - 7.82)
Kagiso Rabada was one of the players behind Delhi Capitals’ successful runs this year. He took 25 wickets in just 12 matches at an average of 14.72. He was the holder of the Purple Cap for a long part of the tournament.
10. Jasprit Bumrah (Matches - 16, Wickets - 19, Average - 21.52, Economy - 6.63)
Jasprit Bumrah might have taken fewer wickets than other bowlers, but his death over bowling made him one of the important players for his side, Mumbai Indians. He managed to maintain the economy of 6.63 and took 19 wickets in the season. His spell in the final helped Mumbai to claim the win, alongside Malinga.
11. Imran Tahir (Matches - 17, Wickets - 26, Average - 16.57, Economy - 6.69)
Imran Tahir had a wonderful IPL season this year for Chennai Super Kings. He picked up wickets in every match and became Chennai’s most go-to bowler. He used to provide crucial breakthroughs to his side and ended the season as the Purple Cap holder.
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