(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Published: Wed 31 May 2023, 2:19 AM As the dust settles on another hugely entertaining IPL season, it's time to reflect on the incredible cricket that the 10 franchises delivered since the start of the tournament on March 31.
There has been a slew of breath-taking individual performances, and while some careers were majestically launched others, sadly, ended abruptly. Even with those departures the pipeline of young talent just keeps flowing.
But for the majority of the 73 matches an intense adrenaline rush overwhelmed the passionate fans that were filled to the rafters in the the eight stadiums across the cricket-crazy country.
From the multi-talented Yashasvi Jaiswal to the dashing Tilak Varma here are five players who delivered a star turn.
Yashasvi Jaiswal (Rajasthan Royals)
(Matches 14, Runs 625, Highest 124, Average 48.08, strike rate 163.61, 100s 1, 50s 5)
Rajasthan Royals batter Yashasvi Jaiswal. - IPL Yashasvi Jaiswal is only 21 years old, but his life looks set to change forever after he won the Emerging Player award at the IPL. Wherever it takes him from here it is unlikely that he will ever forget the past two months where he came of age in the colours of Rajasthan Royals. With 625 runs, Jaiswal set the record for most runs in an IPL season by an uncapped player. It was no surprise that he picked up the coveted Emerging Player Award.
Rinku Singh (Kolkata Knight Riders)
(Matches 14, Runs 474, Highest 67 not out, Average 59.25, Strike rate 149.52, 50s 4)
Kolkata Knight Riders batter Rinku Singh. - PTI Although he has been around for the past five seasons Rinku only appeared to find his niche during this year's IPL. He hit five sixes in the last five balls against Gujarat Titans to script an improbable win for Kolkata Knight Riders who needed 29 runs in the final. The Knight Riders failed to reach the playoffs again, but Rinku was consistently brilliant for the team throughout the season. His 33-ball 67 against Lucknow Super Giants almost took KKR to victory from a hopeless position.
Sai Sudharsan (Gujarat Titans)
(Matches 8, Runs 362, Highest 96, Average 51.71, Strike rate 141.40, 50s 3)
Gujarat Titans batter Sai Sudharsan. - AP Twenty-one-year old Sai comes from a family of athletes from Tamil Nadu where his father even represented India in the SAF Games and mother played state level volleyball. Coming in as a replacement for the injured Vijay Shankar, he grabbed the opportunity with both hands and quickly made his mark. Blessed with sporting genes and immense talent, Sai was all class as he struck a 47-ball 96 in the IPL final to propel Gujarat to a substantial total of 214.
Tilak Varma (Mumbai Indians)
(Matches 11, Runs 343, Highest 84 not out, Average 42.88, Strike rate 164.11, 50s 1)
Mumbai Indians batter Tilak Varma. - AFP Even when his team, Mumbai Indians, finished with the wooden spoon at last year's IPL Tilak Varma delivered several sparkling performances which he was able to reproduce this year with some explosive knocks. The 20-year-old had 11 opportunities to display his skills and he used each and every one of them to send out a strong message to the bowlers at the other end. As if to say, 'I'm going to knock you out of the stadium, Tilak repeatedly dominated the ball to compile 343 runs with an unbeaten 84 being his highest score of the tournament.
Matheesha Pathirana (Chennai Super Kings)
(Matches 12, Wickets 19, Average 19.52, Economy 8.00, Best 3/15)
Chennai Super Kings bowler Matheesha Pathirana. - AFP Sri Lanka's Matheesha Pathirana has a lot in common with fellow countryman Lasith Malinga. He is a dangerous pacer with an unorthodox slingshot bowling action reminiscent of Malinga. He was undoubtedly one of the standout performers for IPL winner Chennai Super Kings and has been held in high regard by the legendary MS Dhoni who has also predicted a bright future for the man from Kandy in Sri Lanka. Often referred to as 'Baby Malinga' he collected 19 wickets in 12 matches.
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