The Indian Premier League (IPL) started in India in 2008 and since then, has produced some truly mouth-watering and eye-catching moments over the last 15 years. The IPL has gone on to create a reputation of being the most famous T20 league in the world, with many top players wanting to perform in the cash-rich league at least once in their careers.
While also providing moments of joy and ecstacy, and also controversies, there are also been some memories that leave a mark on players, fans and anyone who was lucky enough to witness that moment. Here, we look at five such top moments over the last 15 years of the IPL, which will always remain in the memories of the fans.
IPL curtain raiser and Brendon McCullum's heroics
The first match of the IPL in 2008 was between the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Former New Zealand batter Brendon McCullum wreaked havoc with an unbeaten innings of 158 runs in 73 balls with 10 fours and 13 sixes. McCullum became the first centurion of the IPL in the first match of the tournament. He led KKR to 222 runs, winning the game by 140 runs after bundling out the RCB side for 82 runs.
Chris Gayle's Tsunami
West Indies veteran batter Chris Gayle thundered to the highest score in the IPL during the 2013 season. Gayle's special innings were recorded in the history books of the IPL when he scored 175 runs, including 17 sixes in 66 balls against the Pune Warriors India on April 23. This is a decade-long record that is yet to be broken.
When Rahul Dravid threw his cap
When Rahul Dravid used to play for Team India, his persona was quite calm. But ever since he became a coach, many stories of his anger have been going viral. This is the reason that fans on social media also refer to him as the goon of Indira Nagar. Dravid first became a coach for the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in IPL in 2014, and in the same season, there was a moment when he could not control his anger in the dugout.
It was during the match between Rajasthan and Mumbai Indians (MI). Mumbai scored 189 runs in the 15th over and according to the equation, Rajasthan were qualifying for the playoffs. But then an update came that if the Mumbai batter manages to hit a six and made a score of 195 then Rajasthan would be eliminated from the competition and Mumbai would make it to the playoffs.
Mumbai's Aditya Tare hit James Faulkner's ball for a six and following this incident, Dravid was visibly upset and got up from his seat and threw his cap.
When Dhoni entered the field to confront the umpire
Mahendra Singh Dhoni, one of the most successful IPL captains with Chennai Super Kings (CSK), is known for his calm nature. But there was one moment when even Dhoni could not control himself and got angry. He entered the field to argue with the umpire during the IPL 2019 season during a match between CSK and RR with CSK needing 18 runs in the last over of the match.
Ben Stokes came to bowl the last over for Rajasthan and bowled a full toss. Umpire Ulhas Gandhi called it a 'no ball' but then retracted his decision. This angered Dhoni, who came inside the field to talk to the umpire directly from the dugout outside the boundary line. Dhoni had to pay a 50 per cent fine for his match fee.
Shane Watson and his injury-filled
The final of IPL 2019 was played between CSK and MI. Former Australian player Shane Watson played a memorable innings despite an injured knee and blood dripping from his lower leg. Watson did not give up and went on to score 80 runs in 59 balls for Chennai. Even though Chennai lost the final match by one run, Watson won the hearts of all the fans. After this match, Watson had 6 stitches in his knee.
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