11 players with the most 'Man of the Match' awards in the first 11 IPL seasons

#2 AB de Villiers - 18

AB de Villiers

AB de Villiers is one of the most loved cricketers across the world. His pyrotechnics with the bat and his ability to hit the ball to any part of the park earned him the title of Mr 360. In his first three IPL seasons, he was adjudged as the man of the match on only two occasions - both in season 2 which was played in South Africa.

His first MoM award came when he hit a century against the Chennai Super Kings at Kingsmead, Durban. Delhi Daredevils did not get off to a great start as they lost both the openers cheaply. After the wicket of Sehwag, ABD joined Dilshan in the middle but Dilshan departed as soon as he reached a half-century.

ABD did not keep quiet after losing his partner. He single-handedly took Delhi Daredevils from 76-3 to 189 at the end of 20 overs. de Villiers scored 105 runs off just 54 deliveries to set up Delhi win over Chennai Super Kings by 9 runs.

In the 11 seasons of IPL, de Villiers has scored 28 half-centuries and 3 centuries but one of his most memorable innings was none of them. His unbeaten 47 against the Deccan Chargers is fondly remembered by many fans. Thanks to Shikhar Dhawan's half-century the Deccan Charges posted a total of 181 at the end of 20 overs.

Tillakaratne Dilshan led RCB chase with a half-century but his wicket in the sixteenth over turned things around in favour of DC. When Dilshan got out, the Bangalore based franchise need 65 runs off 28 balls. AB de Villiers with the help of Mayank Agarwal who scored 18 off just 6 balls helped RCB get back on track.

When Agarwal got out, RCB needed 39 runs off the last three overs. Sangakkara, the captain of Deccan Chargers, handed over the ball to the experienced Dale Steyn who conceded just 7 runs in his first two overs. AB de Villiers took the attack to his fellow country mate and smashed two fours and two sixes in his over. With 16 runs needed off the last overs, ABD did not want to waste any time and took his side home with 7 balls to spare.

His 17-ball 47 has not only helped him win the man of the match but has also invoked fear in the minds of bowlers, especially Dale Steyn. Later, Steyn went on record to say that he fears bowling to de Villiers. Steyn expressed his fear by saying that "there are only two games that I dread in a year - the two games I play against ABD."