It was double delight for Rishabh Pant, who received two awards on IPL 2018 final night. (Source: IPL)
With Chennai Super Kings winning the Indian Premier League 2018 title on Sunday after beating finalists Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight wickets, the season came to an end with spotlight on a few cricketers who displayed sublime skills throughout their campaigns.
Chennai had finished behind table-toppers Hyderabad in the group stage but defeated them in the final on Sunday to claim the title. As MS Dhoni-led CSK lifted their third title, IPL awarded some of the extraordinary players with individual awards. Here is a look at various award winners after the final match at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai:
Man-of-the-match of the final – Shane Watson
Shane Watson smashed an unbeaten 57-ball 117, his fourth IPL hundred, to set the highest individual score in an IPL final. “It’s been a special season to be honest. To get a special season especially after the last season with RCB. It means a lot to be with a franchise like CSK. After those first ten balls I was only hoping to catch up to at least a run-a-ball. Bhuvi is really good with the new ball and was lucky to get the opportunity to catch up. It was good that I got a couple of boundaries to hit and get on par to take it from there,” he said.
Emerging player of the season – Rishabh Pant
Rishabh Pant ended as the second highest run-getter in the tournament with 684 runs from 14 matches.
Perfect Catch of the Season – Trent Boult
Trent Boult was awarded the perfect catch of the season for his excellent back-peddling catch to get RCB captain, Virat Kohli, out.
Stylish Player of the Season – Rishabh Pant
Delhi Daredevils wicket-keeper-batsman Rishabh Pant holds the records for most fours (68), most sixes (37), and the highest score of unbeaten 128 against SRH this IPL.
Purple cap – Andrew Tye
Andrew Tye won the Purple cap with 24 wickets from 14 matches. He said, “I accept the purple cap with great honour. India’s been a great place with a lot of memories to take home. Unfortunately, our team couldn’t make it to the finals but we’ll try hard to get back next year.”
Orange cap – Kane Williamson
Kane Williamson spearheaded Sunrisers Hyderabad’s attack and won the Orange cap with 735 runs from 17 matches.
Most Valuable Player – Sunil Narine
Sunil Narine was awarded the Most Valubale Player (MVP) for taking 357 runs and 17 wickets from 16 matches. He said, “Unfortunately I couldn’t be there as our team were knocked out. Really wish we were in the finals. It has been a successful journey with the bat and ball. I would like to continue it and I really wish I could be there to collect the award.”
Super Striker of the Season – Sunil Narine
Sunil Narine showed some excellent batting skills this season. He said, “Unfortunately I couldn’t be there as our team were knocked out. Really wish we were in the finals. It has been a successful journey with the bat and ball. I would like to continue it and I really wish I could be there to collect the award.”
Fairplay award – Mumbai Indians
Mumbai Indians failed to make it to the playoffs this season as they ended fifth in the IPL points table.
Pitch and ground award – Cricket Association of Bengal
Cricket Association of Bengal received the pitch and ground award for grounds who’ve hosted seven matches or more.
Pitch and ground award – Punjab Cricket Association
Punjab Cricket Association was awarded pitch and ground award for grounds who’ve hosted less than seven matches.