IPL 2018: 6 most thrilling IPL matches of all time

The arrival of the Indian Premier League brought T20 cricket to the limelight. It has been ten years since its arrival and the fans have witnessed some memorable matches over the first decade. The teams played their hearts out in the field to emerge victoriously. Many games went down to the wire and a few of them went till the super over which was exhilarating for the fans over the years.

The entertainment, thrill, passion and the excitement have been on top in the first decade. The IPL remains one of the most celebrated events in India. On this note, let us have a look at the most thrilling matches in IPL history in the first decade.

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#6 KKR v RCB (Match 11, IPL 2014)

Chris Lynn took a splendid catch to dismiss AB De Villiers

The first leg of the 2014 IPL was held at the United Arab Emirates(UAE). The 11th match of the league was played between two giant sides, Kolkata Knight Riders took on the Royal Challengers Bangalore. The Kolkata Knight Riders were batting first on a flat track.

The RCB bowlers were on top throughout the first innings. They restricted Gambhir's KKR to an average total of 150. For the entire duration, the match was in Bangalore's grasp. The RCB openers put them on course in their chase before Yuvraj Singh flapped a little at the end of the innings.

Virat Kohli's side required nine off the final six deliveries. Two spearheads of the KKR lineup Morne Morkel and Sunil Narine had already bowled their full quota of overs. Vinay Kumar took the responsibility of bowling the final over against his previous franchise. Kumar restricted the opposition to six runs off the over but the highlight of the game was Chris Lynn's acrobatic catch at the boundary.

The game eventually came down to six runs off three deliveries. AB De Villiers smashed the ball to the boundary, everybody was expecting the ball to travel the distance before Lynn ran in and dived backward taking a stellar catch. The Kolkata Knight Riders emerged victorious in the game and Chris Lynn was elected as the man of the match.

#5 KXIP v CSK (Match 54, 2010)

MS Dhoni showed aggression after the game

The 54th game of the 2010 edition was held at the scenic HPCA stadium. The Chennai Super Kings were up against the Kings XI Punjab in a must-win encounter. MS Dhoni's men needed to win the game to reach the semifinal of the tournament. The Kings XI Punjab had to bat first on a flat wicket.

Shaun Marsh led KXIP's batting, scoring an unbeaten 88. He alongside Irfan Pathan helped the Punjab based franchise to a total of 192. Pathan's late flurry of boundaries helped KXIP get past the 190 mark. The Chennai Super Kings had the firepower to chase the target. They had explosive batsmen like Matthew Hayden, Albie Morkel, MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina in their ranks.

Dhoni's men were reduced to 27 for 2 losing both their openers. Suresh Raina along with Badrinath helped CSK to score quickly. The Chennai based franchise required 16 off the final over. Irfan Pathan was bowling to the best finisher in the world. The yellow brigade was expecting MS Dhoni to finish the game.

The Super Kings skipper smashed Irfan for two massive sixes and a boundary to finish the game. Dhoni showed signs of aggression after finishing the game in style. The Chennai Super Kings later went on to win this edition of the league.

#4 CSK v RCB (Match 13, 2012)

Albie Morkel smashed Virat Kohli's over

The Chennai Super Kings and the Royal Challengers Bangalore were the two strongest teams in the 2012 edition of the IPL. The side from Bangalore won the toss and elected to bat first on a batting wicket.

Bangalore's top three Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli led RCB to a massive total of 205. The Chennai Super Kings started their innings slowly but Faf Du Plessis, Suresh Raina, and MS Dhoni ensured that the required run rate was brought down.

The Bangalore bowlers had conceded plenty of runs on the day. Virat Kohli decided to bowl the penultimate over of the innings with CSK requiring 43. Albie Morkel was on strike against the quirky bowler. Morkel smashed three sixes and two boundaries to score 28 from the over.

The momentum shifted towards the home side. Vinay Kumar bowled the final over of the innings where Dwayne Bravo helped CSK to get to the total. Ravindra Jadeja hit the final ball for a boundary to win the game for his side. Faf Du Plessis bagged the man of the match award for his contribution of 71.

#3 MI v RPSG (Final, 2017)

Johnson bowled a wonderful final over to restrict RPSG

The most anticipated game of the season was played between the Mumbai Indians and the Rising Pune Supergiant at Hyderabad. The two sides had met thrice in the competition before the final, the side from Pune remained victorious in all three of them. Mumbai Indians were batting first on a slow wicket.

The Mumbai based franchise had a horrendous start losing both their openers in quick succession. The blue brigade was under immense pressure at the score of 79 for 7 before Krunal Pandya rescued them. Krunal helped his side to reach a respectable total of 129.

Steve Smith's men started their innings steadily. They were playing according to the required run rate. The Pune skipper scored a gutsy half-century. RPS needed eleven off the final over with Manoj Tiwary and Steve Smith at the crease. Tiwary had scored the winning runs for KKR in 2012 final whereas Smith scored 13 off the final over when these two teams met in the first game of the tournament.

Mitchell Johnson bowled wonderfully in the final over to restrict the opposition to ten runs. The Pune based franchise required three runs off the final delivery. Daniel Christian smashed the ball into the deep. The throw was already in as Christian finished the second run. They stood no chance as they took off for the third. The throw was perfect, on the bounce, on top of the stumps. Mumbai Indians won the game in a brilliant manner.

#2 KKR v RR (Match 10, 2009)

The first super over in the IPL was held in this game

The 2009 IPL was held in South Africa. The Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals consisted of youngsters. Rajasthan Royals were batting first on a good Cape Town track. The Royals were led by Shane Warne and the Knight Riders were led by skipper Brendon McCullum.

Rajasthan Royals scored 150 with a significant contribution from Yusuf Pathan. Pathan scored 42 off 21 balls with a strike rate of 200 to accelerate the scoring rate for the Royals. The Knight Riders had to chase 151 from their allocated 20 overs.

The team from Kolkata lost their skipper early. The Knights were in trouble at the score of 67 for 3 after the completion of the first ten overs. Veteran batsman Sourav Ganguly scored 46 to bring KKR close to the target. Two runs were required off the final delivery. Ishant Sharma smashed the final delivery but Shane Warne fielded it brilliantly to reduce the Knights to one run. The game was tied and the first super over of the IPL was played.

McCullum's side scored 15 off the super over. The youngster Kamran Khan had to bowl to two explosive batsmen Chris Gayle and Brendon McCullum. Rajasthan Royals needed 16 off six deliveries to win the game. In-form batsman Yusuf Pathan scored 16 runs off the first four deliveries to win the game for his side. For his match-winning contribution, he bagged the man of the match award.

#1 MI v RR (Match 56, 2014)

The Mumbai Indians needed to chase the target in 14.3 overs

The scenes at Mumbai were scarcely believable as Mumbai Indians' turnaround of a campaign that had begun so disastrously culminated in the most fairy-tale of finishes. The Rajasthan Royals were batting first which meant that the Mumbai Indians needed to chase the target in 14.3 overs to reach the playoffs.

The Royals put up a maverick effort to score 189 for 4 in their allotted 20 overs. The Mumbai Indians had a quick start to their innings before all-rounder Corey Anderson put the final nail in the coffin. He scored an unbeaten 95 off 44 balls to help Mumbai chase the target. The Mumbai Indians needed two runs off the final delivery to qualify. The men in blue lost a wicket in-form of a run-out on the delivery.

The scores were tied. The Rajasthan Royals dugout was celebrating with the thought of qualifying for the playoffs. The calculators were out and there was a twist in the game. The Mumbai Indians could still qualify if they managed to score a boundary on the following delivery. Mumbai Indians wicketkeeper Aditya Tare was the batsman on strike. He smashed James Faulkner's final delivery for a six. Rohit Sharma's men managed to reach the finals due to Tare's heroics. Corey Anderson bagged the man of the match award for his phenomenal performance.