IPL 2020 Award Winners: After a grueling battle of almost 1 and a half months in an unprecedented situation that complied with the new normal with empty stands, dark alleyways, and without the bells and whistles that made T20 cricket attractive until now, Mumbai Indians emerged as the victors of IPL 2020.
In a battle of two of the most deserving teams of the fray, Delhi Capitals and Mumbai Indians, the men in Blue posted a superb bowling performance that restricted Delhi to a modest 156 for 7. Mumbai was off to a flyer when they removed Delhi’s main batter, Marcus Stoinis for a golden duck as the Australian nicked it gently to Quinton De Kock. Things went further downtown for the Capitals when Dhawan and Rahane followed suit in no time with Boult and Jayant Yadav striking for the second and the third wicket respectively.
The two most reliable batsmen of Delhi Capitals started with the repairs and stitched an incredible partnership as Delhi managed to post 118 at the end of the 15th over with Pant holing out to Hardik Pandya. Shreyas Iyer carried on with the innings while the others crumbled like a house of cards as tight bowling and fielding saw off the Capitals’ resolute threat.
Mumbai was off to a blinder with the bat as Quinton De Kock and Rohit Sharma started hammering early with the bat and that disrupted all the calculations of Delhi Capitals. Once De Kock got out Suryakumar Yadav played an anchoring cameo while Rohit made merry with the bat. Ishan Kishan played a phenomenal knock with the bat that countered the late fall of wickets for Mumbai and the defending champions successfully defended their title, claiming the trophy for a record fifth time.
We will take a look at the awards of the recently concluded domestic extravaganza.
IPL 2020 Award winners: Full list
IPL 2020 Champions: Mumbai Indians
IPL 2020 Runners Up: Delhi Capitals
Man-of-the-match of the final – Trent Boult
The New Zealand fast bowler eventually turned out to be the trump card in the rip-roaring finale as he dismantled three vital scalps of the Delhi batting lineup that included the likes of the menacing Marcus Stoinis, a steady Ajinkya Rahane and a potential threat in the form of Shimron Hetmeyer. His figures in the final were of 4-0-30-3, which was nothing short of extraordinary considering the nerves that one must show in the finale.
IPL 2020 Emerging player Winner – Devdutt Padikkal
The towering opener for Royal Challengers Bangalore validated himself as a future star as he carved a few exquisite strokes against the best bowlers of the world, countering brute pace and wily spin with a perfect blend of belligerence and calm, amassing 473 runs from 15 games at a breezy strike rate of 124.80.
IPL 2020 Orange cap Winner – KL Rahul
The Indian opener showcased exemplary batting prowess in this year’s tournament when the greats of the game failed to leave a scratch. Not only did he draft a few resonating strokes, but the confidence with which he led his outfit from the front was also quintessential. He managed to score 670 runs from 14 games at a strike rate of 129.34.
IPL 2020 Purple cap Winners – Kagiso Rabada
The South African tracer bullet tore through the batsmen in the current edition of IPL as his brutal pace knocked the opposition over time and time again. He managed to rack up 30 wickets at an economy rate of 8.34. Despite, losing steam towards the end of the fray, the resolute showdown that he posted was more than enough for him to win the Purple Cap with a gap of a proverbial mile between him and the ones in pursuit.
Most Sixes in IPL 2020: Ishan Kishan
The tattooed youngster, a little bubble of rebellion against the monstrous hitters of the ball, played an extremely aggressive brand of cricket right since his introduction to the season. Starting his season with an incredulous 99 to finishing it with a match-winning unbeaten 33, Ishan Kishan outclassed everyone in the number of sixes struck by him. He smashed the highest number of sixes as his numbers read 30 maximums.
Power player: Trent Boult
Boult had a phenomenal IPL season that saw him claiming 25 wickets from 15 games. Not only did he provide regular breakthroughs, but the miserly economy rate of 7.97 that he bowled at was highly instrumental in derailing the opposition batsmen.
Fair play: Mumbai Indians
This season seemed to be a perfect 10 for Mumbai Indians as not only did they bag the championship, but they also played the game, cleaving to an exemplifying spirit of the sport and grabbing the fairplay award.
Super Striker: Kieron Pollard
Going by the number of runs, it would be highly unfair if we believe that Pollard did not do an ample job for the Indians. It was the amount of impact that he sparked when he came out to bat at number 5 or 6, which is pretty lower down the order. Even coming out to bat such deep in the innings, he managed to rack up 268 runs at an astonishing strike rate of 191.42 that also saw him clubbing 22 sixes in the tournament.
Game changer: KL Rahul
The Punjab skipper showcased unparalleled brilliance with the bat and was the solitary fighter in the ranks of KXIP. It was based on his batting that the team managed to almost slip into the play-offs despite an abysmal start, only to come a cropper in the final game of their campaign.
Most Valuable player: Jofra Archer
The English fast bowler substantiated his towering presence in the Rajasthan Royals line-up with an incredible showdown throughout the fray. He played 14 games, scalped 20 wickets and scored 113 runs at a tempestuous strike rate of 157.25 that saw him hammering 14 sixes.
