The IPL playoff games have all the excitement and nervousness around them. And why wouldn’t there be?
Teams are quite close to the trophy. And no one would like to return with empty hands from this stage.
So players need to pull up their socks and deliver their best possible performance in these games. A few batters went beyond expectations to bring up some bulky knocks.
Here, we’ll look at the top five highest individual scores recorded in the IPL playoffs.
5. Murali Vijay (CSK): 113 vs Delhi Daredevils, 2012
Murali Vijay wrote a piece of history in the 2012 playoffs. He became the first centurion in the IPL knockouts.
It was a special effort from Vijay. And why not? He had a topsy-turvy season, with just three credible knocks to his name.
But he kept everything aside to produce a memorable performance. Vijay started with a couple of boundaries to make his intentions clear.
That Delhi lacked Morne Morkel’s pace worked in Chennai’s favour and, of course, Vijay’s. He was in the offensive mode all through the innings to bring up 113 off 58 balls.
His charge helped CSK put up 222 runs, which were well out of bounds for Delhi. And so CSK stormed into their third consecutive final.
4. Wriddhiman Saha (Kings XI Punjab): 115* vs KKR, 2014
With the team struggling at 30 for 2 in the final, you’d perhaps feel a bit pressurised. But Wriddhiman Saha?
He put away all the tension with his disdainful knock. Saha started cautiously earlier in the innings. But once he found his feet, he got into action.
Saha pressed the accelerator in the second half of Punjab’s innings. He first targeted the spinners before taking the attack to the pacers.
Saha touched the 50-mark in 29 balls before getting the triple digits in the next 20 balls. He stayed unbeaten on 115 to help Punjab put up 199 runs. Unfortunately, Saha’s heroics went in vain as Kolkata Knight Riders thrashed the target with ease.
3. Shane Watson (CSK): 117* vs SRH, 2018
It’s the tournament final. Your team needs to chase 180-odd runs. And you pull out an icy, cool knock to win the trophy. Feels surreal, doesn’t it?
That’s what Shane Watson did for CSK in the IPL 2018 Final. While he struggled initially, everything started to fall in place once he got hold of the conditions.
It took him 11 balls to score his first run – a cracking straight four. Then Watson got in the offensive mode.
Despite the slow start, his fifty came off 33 balls. And in the next 18 balls, Watson raised his hundred. Only the second man to do so in the IPL final after Saha.
In the end, he remained not out on 117 as CSK closed out the chase in 18.3 overs to lift their third trophy. And Watson’s effort went down as one of the best in the league.
2. Virender Sehwag (Kings XI Punjab): 122 vs CSK, 2014
It shouldn’t be a surprise to see Virender Sehwag here. The aggressive opener pulled out his best performance against CSK in the 2014 Qualifier.
And it wouldn’t have come at a better time than this. Sehwag’s knock helped Kings XI Punjab enter their first-ever IPL final.
Sehwag was off to a flyer in the powerplay overs. He started hitting boundaries all over the ground to score his fifty off 21 balls.
The opener kept the attack going to bring up his second IPL ton in 50 balls. His knock came to an end on 122, which included 12 fours and 8 sixes.
1. Shubman Gill (GT): 129 vs MI, 2023
Shubman Gill tops the chart with his brilliant outing against Mumbai Indians (MI). He was in great form in the 2023 season.
Gill had already scored two centuries in the league stage. But he reserved his best for the playoffs. The result? A sublime 129-run knock, the highest in an IPL playoff match.
Gill started in his usual fashion, timing the shots well. He reached his half-century in 32 balls before activating his beast mode. In the next 17 balls, the right-hander doubled his score to raise his third IPL hundred.
Eventually, Gill fell on 129 off 60 balls. Thanks to Gill’s knock, Gujarat Titans put up 233 runs, which were enough to propel them into the final.
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