MS Dhoni had a fairytale ending to the IPL 2021 as his Chennai Super Kings (CSK) defeated Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the final which was played in Dubai on October 15, 2021, by 27 runs. This is CSK’s fourth IPL title in 9 final appearances.
KKR won the toss and decided to bowl first. CSK put on a huge 192/3 in 20 overs with Faf du Plessis top-scoring with 86 with 3 sixes and 7 fours. Robin Uthappa (31), Moeen Ali (37*) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (32) were the other major contributors. For KKR, Sunil Narine picked 2/26.
In reply, though both KKR openers Venkatesh Iyer (50) and Shubman Gill (51) made half-centuries and added 91 runs for the first wicket, they failed to carry on with their innings, leaving the out of form and vulnerable middle order to chase down the runs as the asking rate crept north of the 10 runs per over.
Nitish Rana and Shakib Al Hasan made ducks, Sunil Narine fell for 2, captain Morgan fell for 4 runs and Dinesh Karthik fell for 7 runs. KKR just couldn’t keep up with the required run-rate from the start and lost the match by 27 runs ending on 165/9 in 20 overs. Shardul Thakur (3/38) and Josh Hazlewood and Ravindra Jadeja with two wickets were the picks of CSK bowlers.
There were many amazing individual performances from many cricketers and many match-winning and individual moments of glory through the tournament and many of them were honored after the final match.
Here is a look at the list of award winners on IPL 2021 final’s night:
Player of the IPL Final – Faf du Plessis (CSK)
Game Changer of the Match- Faf du Plessis (CSK)
Perfect catch of the Match- Ravindra Jadeja
Super Striker of the Match- Robin Uthappa (CSK)
Let's crack it sixes of the Match – Venkatesh Iyer (KKR) for his 92 meter six
Power Player of the Match – Venkatesh Iyer (KKR) for his 33 off 18 balls in power play
Emerging Player Award- Ruturaj Gaikwad (CSK) for his 635 runs in 16 matches with one century and 4 half-centuries.
IPL 2020 Fair Play Award- Rajasthan Royals
Perfect catch of the Season- Ravi Bishnoi (PBKS) for his catch of Sunil Narine
Game Changer of the Season – Harshal Patel (RCB)
Super Striker of the Season- Shimron Hetmyer (DC) for his strike rate of 168
Let's crack it sixes of the Season- KL Rahul (PBKS) for 30 sixes in the IPL 2021
Power Player of the Season – Venkatesh Iyer (KKR)
Purple Cap – Harshal Patel of RCB won the Purple cap for most wickets in IPL 2021 as he had 32 scalps in 15 matches with an economy of 8.14, one fifer, and a hat-trick in the tournament. He became the Indian bowler with the most wickets in one IPL season ever and joint most wickets in one season ever along with Dwayne Bravo.
Orange Cap- Ruturaj Gaikwad of CSK won the Orange Cap for most runs in IPL 2021 with 635 runs at an average of 45.35 with one century and 4 half-centuries. He became the youngest player to win the Orange cap for most runs at 24 years and 257 days.
Most Valuable Player of IPL 2021- Harshal Patel (RCB)
