Outwitting Delhi Capitals in the final, Mumbai Indians won their fifth and second consecutive IPL trophy on Tuesday. It was an exhilarating ride, as the tournament offered a vent for the frustration outside.
From a cricketing perspective too, IPL 2020 was on point. While we were witness to plenty of tight encounters, the playoff race of this season was thrilling as well. In terms of performances, most of the usual suspects were there at the top. The likes of KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan did well with the bat, while Jasprit Bumrah and Rashid Khan were brilliant with the ball.
In this article, we take you through one interest stat of IPL 2020. We tell you the six batsmen who faced the most number of balls in this edition.
1. KL Rahul-518
Of course, the orange cap winner had to be on the list. KL Rahul had yet another productive IPL campaign as he came out as the best batsmen of the competition. Appointed as the captain for the first time, KL played with a different strategy this year. Keep his attacking instincts to the side, the KXIP-skipper took the responsibility of anchoring his team’s batting innings. This way, KL had to survive long on the crease, and in effect, several balls came his way. Hence, with 518 deliveries faced, he stands at the top of this list.
2. Shikhar Dhawan-427
Considering he suffered a few ducks and low scores, Dhawan’s presence in this list shows how dominant he was in IPL 2020. At least in two games, he batted almost for the entire twenty overs and he had many fifties as well in other matches. Although Dhawan could have been more attacking, he played cautiously because few other members of the squad were out of form. At the end of it all, Dhawan had faced a total of 427 balls.
3. Shreyas Iyer-421
Shreyas Iyer’s batting position was not constant this season. Although he started the season at No.3, he had to come down on certain occasions to accommodate Ajinkya Rahane. Despite this, Iyer played 421 balls this season. However, this was expected as Iyer was the designated anchor in the squad. He did make a few good scores, but the overall impact by the youngster was somewhat unsatisfactory.
4. Virat Kohli-384
Virat Kohli spent plenty of time on the crease this season. Devdutt Padikkal’s opening partners usually failed, and this meant that Virat came early to the crease. The Indian captain likes to pace his innings, and as part of this strategy, he scored a lot by running between the wickets. With the middle-order below AB de Villiers weak, Virat was also wary of the fact that he had to safeguard his wicket. Although this led to a lower strike-rate, Virat faced plenty of deliveries on the pitch. Hopefully, this could help him down under later this year.
5. Devduttt Padikkal-379
Just below his captain is RCB’s 20-year-old opener Devdutt Padikkal. Despite this being his first season, Devdutt showed immense maturity in this campaign. Although he did exhibit his fearlessness many a time, it was the youngster’s temperament and maturity that impressed the most. He was the team’s highest-scorer above even Virat and ABD, and that shows how impactful he was. Most of Devdutt’s knocks extended after the 10th over, and hence, his number is 379.
6. Shubman Gill-373
KKR’s batting unit struggled in IPL 2020. One of the positives in this department was that Shubman Gill’s rise as a responsible batsman. Although he had proven his skills long back, Gill still had one element he was yet to showcase. Many were curious to see as to how the youngster would respond if pressure mounted on him. Gill showed that he could bat well under these conditions, and at times, he had to go through an intense press to construct knocks. In total, he faced 373 balls in this edition.
