Once the IPL’s league stage concludes, the focus shifts towards the playoffs. This is where the league’s tension and excitement peak, isn’t it?
Over two months of hard work bring teams to this stage. So it’s natural for players to feel the tension in the air.
One small mistake here and everything crumbles down like a pack of cards. But a few batters have beat the shit out of not just the pressure but bowlers also in the playoffs.
So, which batter has scored the most runs in the IPL playoffs? Well, let’s see the top five run-getters here!
5. Shane Watson | 389 Runs
Shane Watson was a reliable player in the IPL. And he showed his reliability on a few counts in the playoffs.
The Australian all-rounder played in six playoffs for three teams. His most worthy performance came for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the 2018 final. Watson smashed an unbeaten century while in pursuit of a 179-run target.
He had a few other crucial contributions to give him a tally of 389 runs in the playoffs. Apart from the century, Watson added three fifties.
4. Faf du Plessis | 390 Runs
Faf du Plessis’ most of the IPL career coincided with the teams that were in beast mode. First, it was CSK before he led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to two playoffs in 2022 and 2024.
And the South African contributed significantly in his five knockouts with CSK. No CSK fan can forget his 86-run knock in the 2021 final!
While du Plessis couldn’t do much for RCB, he has accumulated 390 runs in 15 knockout matches.
3. Shubman Gill | 474 Runs
Shubman Gill’s rise has been remarkable in the IPL. And he is among a few consistent batters in this decade.
This holds true even for his performance in the playoffs. To give you an idea, Gill has scored above 25 runs in each of the 10 playoff games he has played thus far. Not a single one-digit score!
That has put 474 runs to his name in this difficult phase of the league. And he looks to go up the ladder in the coming seasons.
2. MS Dhoni | 523 Runs
MS Dhoni has had a love affair with the IPL playoffs. In his 18-season career, he has missed the knockouts only five times! That’s some unreal consistency, isn’t it?
Dhoni’s sharp and calm mind has made him a familiar face in the playoffs. While he doesn’t have big scores, he’s had 20 or 30-odd knocks quite a few times.
Those were enough in most cases, as he took his side over the ropes. In all, Dhoni batted 23 times and scored 523 runs in the playoffs. (Check out some of Dhoni’s records in the IPL here.)
1. Suresh Raina | 714 Runs
Dhoni’s CSK associate Suresh Raina leads the chart. And he leads by a big margin!
Now you know why everyone calls him ‘Mr. IPL’. Raina was a consistent run-maker for CSK and even Gujarat Lions.
The southpaw carried the consistency in the 11 playoffs he appeared in. Raina often did the heavy lifting with significant knocks. His seven fifties are testimony to it.
This helped Raina accumulate 714 runs in 24 playoff matches at a strike rate of 155.21.
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