As another edition of the Indian Premier League came to a close, here are some of the moments you might have missed from IPL 2023.
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David Warner imitates Ravindra Jadeja celebration
Chennai Super Kings beat Delhi Capitals by 77 runs towards the end of the league stage. The moment of this match came from a bizarre piece of fielding.
After running a quick single, Warner turned for a second run before deciding against it when he saw Jadeja, one of the best fielders in the world, pick it up. Warner taunted Jadeja teasing him to attempt a run out, and waved his bat like a sword as Jadeja often does to celebrate milestones. The moment was met with laughter and showed the kind of entertainment expected of this competition.
Jos Buttler sacrifices himself for Yashasvi Jaiswal
Yashasvi Jaiswal has been a breakout star of the year, and one of his most impressive knocks came in a dominant win from Rajasthan Royals over Kolkata Knight Riders. He scored the fastest ever IPL fifty – off only 13 balls – and finished unbeaten on 98, helping Rajasthan chase down their target with 6.5 overs to spare.
The performance would not have been possible, had Jos Buttler not effectively sacrificed himself early in the innings. Halfway through the second over, Buttler knocked the ball to the off side and turned the single down. Jaiswal, too eager to regain strike, sprinted down the track. Instead of preserving his own wicket, Buttler set off in a hopeless pursuit. Andre Russell’s direct hit found Buttler well short.
Three Rajasthan Royals players collide, a fourth takes the catch
Rajasthan make another appearance, this time with a slightly more light-hearted offering from the field. Early on in the tournament, they successfully chased down Gujarat’s score of 177 in the final over with vital knocks from Sanju Samson and Shimron Hetmyer.
This moment that caught the eye of the viewers during the first innings, when the Royals were in the field. Trent Boult was bowling the first over, and Wriddhiman Saha hit the ball straight up in the air. Three fielders ran to catch the ball and ended up colliding. The ball bounced off the colliding players, where Boult had somehow managed to park himself. He held the catch without much fuss.
Ashish Nehra does not celebrate Shubman Gill’s century
Gill won the Orange Cap and the Most Valuable Player awards in IPL 2023. Of his three hundreds, the first came when Gujarat Titans beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by 34 runs.
While most of his teammates and coaches applauded and celebrated from the sidelines, head coach Nehra remained seated and did not show any signs of celebrating. This caused much confusion, but most think it was down to the number of wickets Gujarat had lost in quick succession.
Final ball drama as Lucknow Super Giants dramatically beat Royal Challengers Bangalore
This one had it all and with all of the amazing moments that have happened since it might be one that escaped the memory. Big contributions from Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran and Ayush Badoni kept the Lucknow Super Giants on course as they tried to chase 214.
With one ball left, it came down to Ravi Bishnoi and Avesh Khan. With a run left to win, Harshal Patel came to bowl at Avesh, tried to run out non-striker Bishnoi, missed the stumps, and threw the wicket down. It did not count as per the Laws, and Harshal had to bowl again.
This time he beat Avesh’s bat, but the batters set off. As Dinesh Karthik fumbled behind the stumps, both safely made their ground for a bye. Amidst all the celebrations from the LSG players, Avesh threw his helmet away. The moment captured the essence of this season’s drama.