The Indian Premier League (IPL) is widely regarded as the most celebrated cricketing event across the globe. Over the years, the cash-rich tournament has gone from strength to strength, creating new records of viewership, media rights and revenue.
The upcoming IPL season, slated to get underway on March 31, will be the 16th edition of the competition.
Ahead of the 2023 season, Star Sports – the official broadcasters of the IPL – celebrated 15 years of the league and handed out awards to some of the greatest ever performers in the tournament's history.
Named the “Incredible Premier League awards”, the awards were given for the best captain, batter, bowler, greatest impact player as well as for the batting performance and bowling performance in a season.
Incredible Captain: Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma pipped CSK skipper MS Dhoni to bag the award for the best captain. Under his leadership, Mumbai Indians have clinched the IPL title five times.
“Thank you for all your support and the vote. It means a lot to me and to the franchise. Fans are the backbone and pillars of this team without a shadow of a doubt," said Rohit on Star Sports. "The way these fans have supported us throughout the years and through our ups and downs, it means a lot to us. Every time we walk out on to the pitch, we wear that Mumbai jersey with a lot of pride and to bring a lot of joy on the faces of these fans. So, for us, it means a lot. Keep supporting us the way you have done the last 15 years. We will try our best to put our best on the field forward and to bring a lot of smiles.”
Incredible Batter: AB de Villiers
AB de Villiers, who played for the Delhi and Bangalore-based teams in the IPL, won this award ahead of Chennai Super Kings legend Suresh Raina.
“De Villiers' ability to hit the ball all around the park, stands head and shoulders above other batsmen in the IPL due to his ability to single handedly win his team matches. De Villiers had some of the most eye-catching innings in the IPL and his performances won him fans from all over India, with every stadium chanting his name when he came in to bat,” said Star Sports.
Incredible Bowler: Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah, the spearhead of MI’s pace attack, claimed the award ahead of Kolkata Knight Riders star Sunil Narine. Bumrah has been instrumental to MI’s success over the years, picking 145 wickets from 120 matches for the franchise.
Incredible Overall Impact: Andre Russell
Andre Russell clinched the Incredible Overall Impact award ahead of Shane Watson. Russell has played a key role in KKR’s success over the years with both bat and ball. In 98 IPL games, Russell has scored 2035 runs at a remarkable strike rate of 177.88. He also has 89 wickets to his name.
Incredible Batting Performance in a Season – Virat Kohli in 2016
Former RCB skipper Virat Kohli’s record performance in IPL 2016 powered him to win the ‘Incredible Batting Performance in a Season’ award ahead of Chris Gayle’s performance for the same team in 2011.
In the 2016 edition of the tournament, Kohli scored 973 runs with four centuries, setting the record for the most runs in an IPL season.
Incredible Bowling Performance in a Season – Sunil Narine in 2012
Sunil Narine was picked as the winner of the ‘Incredible Bowling Performance in a Season’ ahead of Rashid Khan’s showing in 2018 for Sunrisers Hyderabad.
During KKR’s triumphant campaign in 2012, Narine picked up 24 wickets in 15 games at an economy rate of 5.47.
