The IPL carnival has come to an end with Mumbai Indians defending their IPL title. Mumbai Indians have broken the even year jinx in 2020. They have won the final match by 5 wickets. Captain Rohit Sharma steped up in the final and scored a 51 ball-68 to lead Mumbai Indians to victory. The little pocket dynamite, Ishan Kishan, scored a quick-fire 33 off 19 balls.
This is only the second time that a team has managed to retain their championship after lifting the cup in the previous season. Also, with Delhi’s entry to the final this season, every team in the tournament has appeared in the finals at least once.
But the final turned out to be a rather damp squib with the Delhi Capitals making 30-40 runs fewer than what was required on this wicket. However, not all final fixtures were such ‘no contests’.
So, here’s a list of all the IPL winners and the statistics of previous IPL finals.
2008: Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings
Despite all predictions, Rajasthan Royals performed outstandingly well throughout the tournament to clinch 11 victories in 11 games, losing just 3 matches. In a tense final with Chennai Super Kings who were considered the firm favorites throughout the tournament, the Shane Warne-led side showed a great fighting spirit to win the final off the last ball while chasing a target of 164.
2009: Deccan Chargers vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Two of the biggest flop teams from IPL 2008 made it to the final of IPL 2009. And boy, they did put in a solid show. Unlike the previous season’s final that went down to the last ball, the game was in Deccan Chargers’ control right after 15 overs into Bangalore’s batting who were chasing a target of 144. However, the victory margin of just 6 runs explains that the game must have kept the viewers hooked to their television sets right till the last ball.
2010: Chennai Super Kings vs Mumbai Indians
After much hype throughout the season, Mumbai Indians faltered just when it mattered the most in the finals against Chennai Super Kings. And for Chennai, it was almost like they avenged their loss in the previous two seasons after coming so close to the trophy. Chasing what seemed like a low total of 169, Mumbai could score only 146 off their 20-over quota despite Pollard’s blitzkrieg at the end of the inning.
2011: Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
The 2011 IPL finale saw Chennai Super Kings steamrolling the Bangalore side into oblivion. Batting first, Chennai scored a whopping 205 runs. Chasing the target, Bangalore lost Chris Gayle early on, which derailed their run chase right from the start. The tough line and length that the Ashwin-Jakati duo bowled at made scoring quite difficult for Bangalore who could score only 147 runs off their 20 overs.
2012: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Chennai Super Kings
CSK could have made history as the only team to win three IPL titles in a row, but that was not to be. Despite setting a solid target of 191, they lost the game by five wickets as Kallis and Bisla snatched the game away from them.
2013: Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings
The script for the final this year was similar to that of 2010- a low total set by the team batting first, the chasing side losing wickets early on, and never recovering from it to lose the game. Even the teams were the same- except that Mumbai Indians won this time. Chasing 149 to win, CSK kept losing wickets to fold for 125 for the loss of 9 wickets despite Dhoni’s excellent 63-run not out inning.
2014: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Kings XI Punjab
For the second time in 3 years, Kolkata were chasing an IPL final target in excess of 190 and they did it splendidly. Backed by Manish Pandey’s solid 50-ball knock of 94, the team successfully chased down the 200-run target set by Punjab to clinch their second IPL title in three years.
2015: Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings
This was the year when the belief that the IPL championships played in odd years belonged to Mumbai Indians began taking shape. Batting first, Mumbai hammered 202 runs. Chennai in their reply could score just 161 runs off their 20 overs, leading to their third loss in four IPL finals in as many years.
2016: Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Despite all predictions, Sunrisers snatched the much-alluded victory from Bangalore to clinch their first IPL trophy. The splendid individual performances put in by Gayle and skipper Kohli mattered little as Bangalore’s middle-order failed miserably to capitalize on the good start provided by them. Bangalore fell short by 8 runs while chasing a target of 208.
2017: Mumbai Indians vs Rising Pune Supergiant
This has possibly been the closest finale contest in the history of IPL. Batting first, Mumbai Indians could only manage 129 runs off their 20 overs. CSK must have fancied their chances looking at their target. However, the run chase went off the rails with skipper Smith and opener Rahane taking up too many balls. Their defeat margin was only that of a run.
2018: Chennai Super Kings vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
CSK performed in the final just like they had performed throughout the tournament. And regardless of whether or not Sunrisers would have fancied their chances going into the finals, the 179-run target that they set for CSK wasn’t enough as the Dhoni-led side romped home with 8 wickets and more than an over to spare.
2019: Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings
The IPL final must-have refreshed MS Dhoni’s bitter memories of the 1-run loss against the same side in 2017. Chasing 150 runs to win, CSK’s middle order fell like a pack of cards. Despite Watson’s solid 80-run knock, CSK fell one run short of their target.
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