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Indian Premier League has graduated into its eighth season and has added few more big names to the gala. The first week saw seven matches fought keenly among all the eight franchises. As has been customary, the not-so-prominent names stole the thunder from the big wigs in the first week itself; while some of the heavyweights proved why they are the most followed cricketers in the shorter format.Though all the season’s costly buys are yet to announce their arrival, nevertheless IPL 8 has announced itself to fans in a rousing fashion. Here’s a look at the top performers from the previous week and the best eleven that can be picked from them.
#1 Brendon McCullum- CSK
Carrying on from where he left off in the World Cup’15, Kiwi skipper Brendon McCullum scored his second IPL T20 century on Saturday against SRH playing for CSK. He gave the viewers memories of his knock of 158* in the inaugural IPL match in 2008.
Despite his first outing resulting in only 4 runs, in CSK’s second match, the right-handed opener assaulted the SRH bowlers with a 56-ball 100 which included 9 maximums into the stands. He became the first man to reach the three-figure mark this season, and by doing so helped CSK register their second win, by 45 runs.
#2 Chris Gayle- RCB
The Jamaican juggernaut proved too good for the KKR bowlers on Saturday night at the Eden Gardens. Set to chase a competitive target of 178, Gayle opened the innings for RCB and steadied his innings as his colleagues were heading back to the pavillion one after another.
Throughout his innings, Gayle looked menacing and despatched boundaries and sixes of even the toughest of deliveries. He got out four runs short of his century but not before ensuring that RCB had come out of its spot of bother. With the left-hander playing a blinder of a knock, RCB took two points home in its very first match defeating the defending champions.
#3 Gautam Gambhir- KKR
Gambhir is the skipper of the two-time IPL champions KKR. Bestowed with the dual responsibility of leading the side and playing the role of batting mainstay for the team, the 33-year-old Delhi-ite scored two crucial fifties in the only two matches KKR has played so far.
Opening the batting, the elegant left-handed batsman played a mature knock of 57 of 43 balls to set a strong platform for the chase against MI. He carried on with this form over to KKR’s second encounter on Saturday against RCB. Having decided to bat first, Gambhir built a concrete opening stand with Uthappa scoring 81 of the first 10 overs. In the process, he reached his second fifty of the season; unfortunately the team losing to an uncontrollable Gayle storm.
#4 Suryakumar Yadav- KKR
Being an aggressive batsman and an occasional medium-pacer, Mumbaikar Suryakumar Yadav stole the thunder from the big names during the first match of this IPL season. KKR was chasing a target of 169 set by MI at the Eden Gardens. Though skipper Gambhir and Manish Pandey added an 85-run stand, the visitors found some respite as they dismissed the duo.
But, ironically MI found their nemesis in this talented youngster Suryakumar Yadav who came in at 121/3 with 48 required from 34 balls, hit some sensational shots that included a four and 5 sixes. He thus helped KKR pull off a win with 9 balls to spare and continue their title defence.
#5 MS Dhoni- CSK
One of the most experienced campaigners and the longest serving captains of a franchise, MS Dhoni knows the dynamics of the team like nobody else does. He has won two IPL trophies and Champions League T20 trophies each. Being a reliable wicket-keeper adds to the complete package that Dhoni brings to the CSK setup.
MS Dhoni of CSK has had a silent yet consolidative start this season. He added a valuable 30 down the order in the first match against DD which CSK won by a close margin of 1 run. He then played a quickfire fifty against SRH powering CSK’s total to a formidable 209 in their own den, Chepauk. This knock clubbed with his tactical captaincy moves saw CSK already gaining 4 points from two matches.
#6 Deepak Hooda- RR
Hooda was bagged by RR in 2014 but made his IPL debut only last week. The 19-year-old plays for Baroda in Ranji Trophy. This all-rounder was all over the news after his belligerent 25-ball 54 against DD on Sunday.
Chasing 185 for a win, RR were 4 down for 78 and with the asking rate soaring to two required per ball, Hooda was forced to take risks. He did survive a couple of dropped chances but punished all the full tosses the way they needed to be – into the crowd. This champion show earned him the Man-of-the-Match award as RR sealed the contest with 3 wickets in hand. Hooda had earlier played an explosive knock in RR’s opening game against KXIP by scoring 30 runs of 15 deliveries in the death overs of the innings.
#7 James Faulkner- RR
Faulkner has proved more often in international cricket that he has the ability to change the game with both bat and the ball. In IPL, he has not been any different playing for the RR side. He conjured up a crucial 46-run knock which was punctuated with three 6s and two 4s to fire the struggling RR scorecard to a defendable total of 162 in the opening game against KXIP.
He then came back with the ball and penetrated through the rock-solid KXIP middle-order, bowling out the likes of Maxwell, Bailey and Johnson to steer RR to a comprehensive win. He also won the Man-of-the-Match award for his all-round show.
#8 Harbhajan Singh- MI
Bhajji as he is fondly known as, Harbhajan Singh has been with the MI franchise right from the first IPL. He has been the prominent spin force for MI all through their T20 journey and has even won them a CLT20 title as captain in 2011.
The experienced off-spinner came up with a hurricane performance on Sunday night, but with the bat for a change. As Mumbai were staring at defeat while chasing a target of 178, Bhajji set the Wankhede Stadium ablaze as he plundered a 24-ball 64. In the process, he scored the quickest fifty for the Mumbai-based franchise and deposited 6 deliveries into the stands, but all in vain. He earlier dismissed both the dangerous looking openers (Sehwag and Vijay) of the KXIP side.
#9 Anureet Singh- KXIP
Anureet Singh already has 5 wickets to his tally from just the two matches he has played in 2015 IPL. He helped KXIP restrict RR to a total of 162 by scalping three important batsman in the RR lineup.
Roped in by KXIP in the 2014 auction, Anureet bought two more wickets in his second match played against MI on Sunday. He was the man who put a check on the storming Harbhajan Singh, who made a threatening 24-ball 64. That ensured KXIP won the match without any further hiccups. He was later praised by leading Aussie pacer Mitchell Johnson for his hardwork and commitment.
#10 Imran Tahir- DD
On Sunday, DD succumbed to their 11th IPL defeat in a row; however, their spinner from South Africa was far from giving up. Fresh after having had an excellent World Cup, Tahir scathed through the RR line-up by taking 4/28, which stands as the best figure so far in the seven matches played this season.
Tahir’s best figures may not have been good enough for DD to pull off a win against RR, rest assured, it augurs well for the struggling franchise as it has found an in-form bowler who can disturb the opposition line-up in an effective way.
#11 Ashish Nehra- CSK
Nehra, who often finds himself to be at the receiving end of social media trolls, came out in flying colours during CSK’s first match this season, against DD. He was spiteful against the opposition as he sent three top-order batsman back to the pavillion.
CSK, with the help of this fiery spell from the left-armer, pulled off a narrow win by a margin of 1 run. Nehra was duly declared the Man-of-the-Match for his superb bowling performance.
