5 players who scored a half-century and took 3 wickets in an IPL game

All-round performances are like golddust in any form of cricket and in case of T20s, they are perhaps something worth much more than that. A quality all-round performance allows the captain to save a bowler who might not be having a particularly good day.

On the other hand, excellent all-round performances invariably result in the team having a great chance of winning the game.

Needless to say, the benchmark, when it comes to T20 cricket is a half-century and a three-wicket haul, since the game isn’t long enough. The IPL has seen plenty of such performances and here is a look at five of the best ones.

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#5 Yuvraj Singh 66* and 4/29 for Pune Warriors against Delhi Daredevils, 2011

Back in 2011, Yuvraj Singh was the world’s hottest all-rounder, having been crowned the Man of the Tournament in the World Cup that year. That year he joined the newly minted franchise Pune Warriors India and in their game against the Delhi Daredevils at Mumbai, he delivered a brilliant all-round performance.

Pune batted first and got off to a great start before Yuvraj came to the crease with the score at 82 for 2 in the 9th over. He smashed an unbeaten 66 off 32 balls (4 fours and 5 sixes) to help the team reach 187.

However, the heroics from Daredevils openers David Warner and Virender Sehwag killed the match off quickly. The pair put on 75 for the 1st wicket in 7 overs and had it not been Yuvraj Singh’s immense spell of 4 for 29 in 4 overs, the match would not have gone into the final over.

#4 Paul Valthaty 75 and 4/29 for Kings XI Punjab against Deccan Chargers, 2011

Paul Valthaty

The former Kings XI Punjab opening batsman was a revelation in the 2011 IPL and in the game against Deccan Chargers, he showed what he could do with both the ball and the bat. The Deccan Chargers had got off to an excellent start and had reached 91 for 2 in the 12th overs when Paul Valthaty struck with his right arm medium.

He got a well set Shikhar Dhawan and then went on to pick up three more wickets to end up with figures of 4-29 in 4 overs. The Chargers could only make 165.

During the Kings XI chase, it was Valthaty again who proved to be the thorn in the flesh for the Chargers. Against a bowling attack led by Dale Steyn, he made 75 off 47 balls and hit 8 fours and 5 sixes to kill the game pretty early.

Along with Adam Gilchrist, he put on 136 for the 1st wicket in 14 overs and Kings XI won the game in the 18th over.

#3 Yuvraj Singh 83 and 4/35 for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Rajasthan Royals, 2014

Yuvraj Singh

The legendary Indian player may not have always set the IPL on fire but from time to time, he did deliver excellent all-round performances and in the game against Rajasthan Royals in 2014, Yuvraj Singh delivered another memorable performance.

He walked in to bat in the 9th over with the RCB struggling at 40 for 3 but then proceeded to take on the Royals bowlers and carted them all over the place. He made 83 off 52 balls and hit 7 boundaries, in addition to 7 sixes to help RCB score 190.

In the second innings, Royals started steadily but before long Yuvraj’s left arm off-spin tied them up in knots. He picked up the wickets of Karun Nair, Shane Watson, Stuart Binny and Sanju Samson to reduce the Royals to 106 for 5 in the 14th over.

However, the Australian duo of Steve Smith and James Faulkner played brilliantly to take the Royals to a victory with 7 balls to spare.

#2 Shane Watson 89* and 3/19 for Rajasthan Royals against Mumbai Indians, 2011

Shane Watson

He was the man of the tournament in the inaugural IPL and ever since, Australian all-rounder Shane Watson has been one of the best performers in the tournament. Back in 2011, he delivered a virtuoso performance against the Mumbai Indians and it is rightly considered one of the greatest all-round efforts in the history of the tournament.

Mumbai Indians chose to bat first at home but Watson’s opening burst proved decisive as he picked up the wickets of TL Suman and Ambati Rayadu in his first spell. He returned to pick up the crucial wicket of Kieron Pollard to end up with figures of 3/19 in 4 overs. Mumbai Indians were restricted to 133/5 in 20 overs.

In their chase, Watson tore into the Mumbai Indians bowlers and hit 9 fours, in addition to 6 sixes in his 47 balls 89. Watson and his opening partner Rahul Dravid finished off the chase in the 14th overs as the Royals thumped Mumbai Indians by 10 wickets.

#1 Chris Gayle 107 and 3/21 for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Kings XI Punjab, 2011

Chris Gayle

Chris Gayle’s return to the IPL in 2011 with the Royal Challengers Bangalore was nothing short of electrifying as he destroyed most of the bowling attacks that he faced. In addition to that, he used to bowl pretty regularly at the time as well and it all came together in the game against Kings XI Punjab at Bangalore.

RCB were put into bat first and the Jamaican completely brutalised the bowling attack with an innings of astonishing ferocity. He faced 49 balls, hit 10 fours and 9 sixes to score 107 runs as RCB piled up 205 in their 20 overs.

The Kings XI chase never really took off ever since Adam Gilchrist was dismissed off the very first ball and then Gayle came in as the first change bowler to have some more fun. Bowling his fast off-spin, he picked up 3/21 in four overs as the Kings XI innings crumbled under the pressure of the scoring rate. They made 120/9 in 20 overs.

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