The league phase of the Indian Premier League’s 2018 edition had one of the most dramatic endings in the IPL’s history. In the first match on Sunday, 20 May, the wooden spoon holders Delhi Daredevils knocked out defending champions Mumbai Indians and then Kings XI Punjab missed the playoffs bus after losing to Chennai Super Kings. It was their fifth loss in a row!
Finally, after Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals sneaked through to the playoffs stage.
Here’s a look at the league phase of IPL 2018 through some interesting numbers.
1. Highest Contribution to Team
Kings XI Punjab’s KL Rahul finished the league phase as the third-highest run-scorer with 659 runs in 14 matches. The Punjab team were off to a great start, winning five of their first six matches. And it was Rahul, who led the team from the front.
However, the other batsmen in the team didn’t support him, and therefore the Kings had to settle for the seventh spot in the standings.
With 661 runs, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s captain Kane Williamson has justified the team management's decision to pick him as the skipper of the side. The New Zealand player has shouldered the responsibilities of a side which isn’t particularly strong in the batting department.
2. Best Economy Rate in Six Overs
The last three names in the best economy rates (in first six overs) do not come as a surprise at all, as all the three players are T20 veterans at the moment. But it was amazing to watch Afghanistan’s Mujeeb Zadran steal the show in his first IPL ever.
The off-spinner finished as the tenth-highest wicket-taker in the league phase with 14 wickets. His best figures in the tournament – 3/27 came against Rajasthan Royals on 6 May.
3. Most Sixes in Last Five Overs
One of the biggest positives from IPL 2018 has to be MS Dhoni finding his mojo back. He was struggling to score runs consistently in the past one-and-a-half years, but in this IPL, Dhoni had been a front runner with the bat.
The wicketkeeper-batsman finished the league phase as the ninth highest scorer with 446 runs. Dhoni, who has hit 24 sixes in the final phase of the matches, has helped Chennai chase down big targets.
4. Catches Taken-Dropped
Some spectacular catches have been taken in this IPL, but if one gauges the fielding performance in this IPL, they would have to say that it’s been very poor.
Sunrisers Hyderabad have managed to finish at the top of the table even with the worst catch taken-dropped percentage, however, Royal Challengers Bangalore’s fielding have hurt them a lot. They have dropped some crucial catches and as a result have gone on to lose important games.
5. Best Strike-Rate in First Six Overs
Sunil Narine has performed for Kolkata Knight Riders with the bat once again. With a strike rate of 198.42 in the first six overs phase of the match, he has certainly got KKR off to terrific starts in this tournament.
Narine finished the league phase as the 20th best batsman with 327 runs. He notched two half-centuries and recorded an average of 23.35.
6. Best Strike-Rate in Last Five Overs
KL Rahul topping the charts for the best strike-rate in the last five overs is speaking a lot about his performance in this IPL. If he is batting at a strike-rate of 252.17, it means that he has batted through the innings and looked to end Punjab’s innings with a big flourish.
Same goes for Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson, who bat at number four for Delhi Daredevils and Rajasthan Royals, respectively. They come into bat, consolidate the innings and then look to end with a bang. These are good signs for the future of Indian batting.
7. Lowest Win Percent for IPL Captains
Virat Kohli has recorded a stat he will not be impressed with. The Indian captain has the lowest win percentage in the IPL against his name. Kohli led his team to the final of the tournament in 2016, but RCB finished last and sixth in the last two seasons, respectively.
It’s interesting to see Gautam Gambhir’s name in the list as he has led Kolkata Knight Riders to two IPL titles in 2012 and 2014.
8. Most Dismissals by Designated Wicket-Keeper
During the match against Kings XI Punjab on Sunday, MS Dhoni went past Kamran Akmal’s record for most dismissals in T20 cricket. He took three catches to move to 216 dismissals in his 291-match T20 career.
Dhoni, along with his batting, has kept his wicket-keeping in top gear. The CSK skipper has taken 149 catches and effected 72 stumpings in T20s.
9. Most Runs in IPL 2018
Even though the Delhi Daredevils have finished last in the tournament, their star batsman Rishabh Pant has finished the league phase as the highest scorer, and therefore is holding the Orange Cap at the moment.
Pant smashed a century and five half-centuries in 14 matches. He recorded an average of 52.61 at a strike rate of 173.60. The 20-year-old scored 128 runs off 63 balls against Sunrisers Hyderabad, but Delhi lost that match by 9 wickets.
10. Most Wickets in IPL 2018
Kings XI Punjab’s Andrew Tye finished the league phase as the Purple Cap holder with 24 wickets. The fast bowler, who took three four-wicket hauls in the tournament, recorded an incredible bowling average of 18.66.
The Australian recorded his best figures of 4/16 against Mumbai Indians on 16 May. However, Punjab lost the match by three runs.
(Statistics by Arun Gopalakrishnan)
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