The Indian Premier League is arguably the finest cricketing league in the world. What makes the league even better is the fact that it has always been interesting. Right since its inception, the tournament has been delivering extravagant events and records. Here, we’ll have a look at the top 5 scores on the IPL debut.
#1 Brendon McCullum – 158 (2008)
Amid all the hearsays, the Indian Premier League finally commenced on 18th April 2008. The pundits & spectators all over the globe had lots of confusion about this new addition to the game, however, all it took them was 20 overs of Brendon McCullum’s batting, to form an opinion on the league. Batting first against the Royal Challengers Bangalore, McCullum walked out to bat for the Kolkata Knight Riders and the rest, as they say, is history.
The Kiwi batsman brutally whacked a fine bowling line-up of Bangalore with immense ease. The blend of brutal force combined with street smartness helped him score a total of 158 runs in just 73 balls. The knock consisted of 10 fours and 13 sixes and was the highest individual score for a long time. Shah Rukh Khan’s KKR finished on a total of 222 runs in 20 overs and the pressure of chasing such a huge total in such an extravagant event made the Royal Challengers choke as they couldn’t even cross the 100-run mark in the second innings.
#2 Mike Hussey – 116 (2008)
After announcing its commencement with the help of an absolute carnage by Brendon McCullum, the second game of the Indian Premier League witnessed the clash of the two Kings i.e. Yuvraj Singh’s Kings XI Punjab & MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings. The aficionados were expecting a replay of what Baz did and CSK’s opener Michael Hussey didn’t disappoint them as he went on to play a mouth-watering knock of 116 runs in just 54 balls. He hit a total of 9 sixes & 8 fours in that inning.
Continuing the norm set by KKR, the Super Kings also posted a huge target of 241 runs. The Kings XI initially looked determined to chase it down but eventually, they lost the momentum and handed over a win to the opponents.
#3 Shaun Marsh – 84 (2008)
Kings XI Punjab played against the Deccan Chargers for the first time in the tournament in the 19th game of the season at Hyderabad. The first innings saw a slow-yet-steady batting effort from the hosts as they ended up on a total of 167 in 20 overs, all thanks to VVS Laxman & Rohit Sharma’s decent contributions with the bat.
The Chargers were looking forward to defending the total, nonetheless, their hopes shattered when Shawn Marsh started hitting their bowlers all over the park. The explosive opener scored 84 runs in just 62 balls in his IPL debut & with the help of a fine finishing touch by Mahela Jayavardhane, the visiting team comfortably chased down the target with 7 balls to spare.
#4 Graeme Smith – 71 (2008)
The 9th match of the inaugural season of the Indian Premier League saw a classic clash between the Deccan Chargers & the Rajasthan Royals. The match featured two 200+ scores in just a total of 40 overs. Batting first, VVS Laxman’s men posted a total of 214 runs with the help of an unrealistic hundred by Andrew Symmonds.
The target was large and the pundits had already written off RR from that game. The initial breakthrough of Kamran Akmal made the situation even worse for the visitors. However, Graeme Smith firmly held the other end and stitched a responsible partnership with Yusuf Pathan. Both the batsmen lost their wickets after a while but with the help of a couple of cameos from Mohammed Kaif & Shane Warne, the Royals chased down the total with a ball to spare.
#5 James Hopes – 71 (2008)
It was the very second of the tournament. The Chennai Super Kings were all set to take on the Kings XI Punjab just a day after Brendon McCullum’s carnage gave a brilliant start to the tournament. CSK won the toss & elected to bat first. With the help of a scintillating 116* from Mike Hussey, the Men In Yellow posted a mammoth target of 241 runs in 20 overs.
K Goel & James Hopes walked out to bat for the Kings XI Punjab in the second innings. Even though Goel walked back after showing initial signs of glory, James Hopes, on the other end, continued the hitting. He completed his fifty in just 25 balls which was also a record at that time. However, in the 11th over, the Aussie cricketer mistimed P Amarnath’s slower delivery & was caught by Joginder Sharma. James scored 71 on his IPL Debut and his dismissal also resulted in KXIP’s loss.
