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The 2009 season of the IPL was the first of the only two times so far that the tournament was hosted on foreign soil, a third time touted to happen in the upcoming season. The reason for this is the arrival of the Indian Legislative General Assembly elections, which happens once in every five years between April and May, which in turn is bound to clash with the IPL which also happens usually at around the same time.
The 2009 season - which was eventually claimed by Adam Gilchrist's Deccan Chargers - was thus hosted in South Africa, and it was in stark contrast to the previous year when runs were abundant and wickets only occasional.
The tables turned in the pacy South African wickets which favored the bowlers more than what the shortest format usually promises. But still there were a few batsmen who found it relatively easy to hoard mountains of runs- and today, let us go back in time and follow up on who emerged top-scorers for each IPL side nine years ago.
#1 Matthew Hayden (Chennai Super Kings)
Key Statistics: Matches 12, Innings 12, Not Outs 1, Runs 572, Highest 89, Centuries 0, Fifties 5, Average 52.00, Strike Rate 144.81.
The Chennai Super Kings continued their solid run from 2008 and secured a place in the semi-finals, finishing second in the Group Stage with 8 wins and 1 non-result in 14 games. However, a disappointing performance in the semifinals against Royal Challengers Bangalore culminated in the side crashing out without a place in the finals.
The Chennai squad benefited mainly from the presence of Matthew Hayden, Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni who were constantly among runs and also eventually became a part of the top-15 runscorers from the season. Among them, Hayden who amassed 572 runs from just 12 innings emerged the top-scorer of the season, returning home with the Orange Cap as well.
The Australian's best night came at Centurion on 7th May 2009, when CSK beat Punjab by 12 runs courtesy of the D/L method. Hayden's onslaught at the top order helped them score at a good pace, which proved vital in the end when the rain came into play. Hayden had made 89 from 58 balls (8 fours, 6 sixes) also becoming the man-of-the-match.
#2 Adam Gilchrist (Deccan Chargers)
Key Statistics: Matches 16, Innings 16, Not Outs 0, Runs 495, Highest 85, Centuries 0, Fifties 3, Average 30.94, Strike Rate 152.31.
Adam Gilchrist and co. had a really disappointing campaign in the opening season of the Indian Premier League in 2008, and the side was determined to make amends as the attention shifted to South Africa the very next year. True to their word, the side emerged champions within two more months and underlined a spectacular comeback.
Among the champions, their captain Gilchrist himself played one of the most pivotal roles for the side in the tournament, eventually coming second behind national teammate Hayden in the run-charts. He opened the innings for the Chargers throughout the event and amassed 495 runs from 16 innings, at a strike rate of over 150.
His best knock came against table-toppers Delhi in the semi-finals, when he scored 85 off 35 balls to help his team overcome the 154-run target with relative ease. His innings effectively removed Delhi from the remainder of the tournament, after they had a brilliant run in the group stages.
#3 AB de Villiers (Delhi Daredevils)
Key Statistics: Matches 15, Innings 13, Not Outs 4, Runs 465, Highest 105, Centuries 1, Fifties 3, Average 51.67, Strike Rate 130.99.
"ABD" as he is fondly called, will forever be placed at the forefront of limited overs' cricket, the world has witnessed his cricketing prowess in various forms across the years. He was one among the best players of IPL 2009, which was incidentally conducted in his own home country, ending the tournament with the third spot among run-making charts, behind Hayden and Gilchrist.
AB de Villiers was part of the Delhi Daredevils' side which finished first in the group stages, with 10 wins from 14 matches in total. The side owes much of its advancements to the top-order batsman, who made 465 runs from 13 innings, at a strike rate of nearly 131. His best innings was undoubtedly the 105 he scored in his first ever innings in the season, against Chennai Super Kings at Kingsmead, Durban. The innings featured 5 fours and 6 sixes in a total of 54 balls and helped Delhi secure a win by 9 runs in the end.
ABD's consistency helped the Daredevils' start matches well, which was reflected in their victories in many cases. They were, however, eliminated by the Deccan Chargers in the semi-finals. To this date, 2009 remains the only time that The Delhi franchise (now renamed to "Delhi Capitals") stood at the top of the table in the Group Stage.
#4 JP Duminy (Mumbai Indians)
Key Statistics: Matches 13, Innings 12, Not Outs 3, Runs 372, Highest 62, Centuries 0, Fifties 5, Average 41.33, Strike Rate 114.46.
The role of the Mumbai Indians as far as the entire history of IPL is concerned, is undeniable. The three-time champions, however, did not start the opening seasons very well, and in 2009 they failed to secure a top-four finish in the group stages for the second time in a row, after the debut season in 2008. With just 5 wins from 14 outings, Mumbai finished in the penultimate spot in the group stages.
Both their batting and bowling were below-par, with no one apart from Sachin Tendulkar or JP Duminy crossing the 300-run mark. South African Duminy was the top scorer for the franchise in 2009, wherein he made 372 runs across 12 innings. He was a vital cog in the middle-order in many cases where others failed to make impressions.
Duminy's best knock came against arch-nemesis Chennai Super Kings on 16th May 2009, when he made 62 off 54 balls, including 4 fours and 2 sixes. The rest of the batsmen failed and Mumbai could add only 147 to their board, which was then polished off by a clinical Chennai batting display that included Hayden, Raina, and Dhoni.
#5 Brad Hodge (Kolkata Knight Riders)
Key Statistics: Matches 12, Innings 12, Not Outs 3, Runs 365, Highest 73, Centuries 0, Fifties 3, Average 40.56, Strike Rate 117.74.
Yet another team that underwent a really torrid time at the IPL 2009 - the KKR. With just 3 wins from 14 contests in the group stage, Kolkata finished a miserable last in the standings, as very few players of the franchise emerged clean having given it their all despite the harrowing run.
One among them was Australian Brad Hodge, who emerged Kolkata's highest run-scorer, also the eighth-best in the whole tournament. Hodge made 365 runs from 12 innings at a strike rate of over 117. He also had three fifties to his name, including his season-best score of 73.
The 73 came against Mumbai Indians on 1st May 2009, when Mumbai scored just 148 runs to give Kolkata a shot at victory. And the win was in sight as long as Hodge was out there in the middle when he played 60 deliveries, including 6 hits to the ropes and 3 over it. But Kolkata crumbled as soon as he fell, eventually falling short by 9 runs. The loss summed up their tournament in a nutshell.
#6 Jacques Kallis (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
Key Statistics: Matches 15, Innings 15, Not Outs 2, Runs 361, Highest 69*, Centuries 0, Fifties 3, Average 27.77, Strike Rate 108.73.
Coming into the second season of the Indian Premier League, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) had nothing much to lose, especially after their uninspired showing in the previous year. The side had finished seventh in 2008, only above Deccan Chargers in the group-stage standings.
But RCB trumped all expectations, securing a place in the final-four and entering the knockout stages, after which they defeated CSK to enter the finals. They were then defeated by Deccan in the most important game to be reduced to runners-up of IPL 2009.
Their charge was led mainly by their main all-rounder Jacques Kallis, who top-scored for the side with 369 runs from 15 innings. His best performance came in a group-stage encounter against Mumbai, when Bangalore easily overcame the 150-run target with nine wickets in hand, chiefly thanks to Kallis' 59-ball-69 not out (5 fours, 2 sixes).
#7 Yuvraj Singh (Kings XI Punjab)
Key Statistics: Matches 14, Innings 14, Not Outs 2, Runs 340, Highest 58, Centuries 0, Fifties 2, Average 28.33, Strike Rate 115.65.
The Punjab rockstar was in the best of his form in the 2009 IPL, topping the run-charts for Kings XI in the second edition of the league. Though, Yuvraj just had two fifties to his name, the consistent manner with which he scored runs while maintaining an average close to the thirties, played a big role in handing the side a mid-table finish, after having lost four games in a row during the beginning stages of the season.
Yuvi scored 340 runs in 14 innings, and the 58 runs he scored against Chennai Super Kings on 7th May 2009 was his best knock. Interestingly, Orange-Cap holder Matthew Hayden also scored his best score of the season on the same day, a well made 89 runs, and Punjab suffered a disappointing defeat, falling short of Chennai's 185 by just 11 runs.
#8 Ravindra Jadeja (Rajasthan Royals)
Key Statistics: Matches 13, Innings 13, Not Outs 2, Runs 295, Highest 42, Centuries 0, Fifties 0, Average 26.82, Strike Rate 110.90.
Well, very few would have thought that Ravindra Jadeja, of all players, would top the Royals' run-charts. Interestingly, Jadeja would go on to become one of India's prime bowling all-rounders where he continues to perform, even today. But that was definitely not where he started, turning out as the defending champions' best man with the bat while playing out a disastrous season and finishing only at 6th place.
Jadeja was a lower-middle order batting option in a lineup that had a few stars like Shane Watson and Yusuf Pathan, and his purpose at best was to provide solidarity to the final few overs of every innings. Yet, he often did more than what was expected of him. Though he did not make more than 42 runs in any innings, he still averaged close to 27.
Some accomplished batsmen like Gautam Gambhir, Ross Taylor, Virat Kohli, Brendon McCullum, Rahul Dravid, Andrew Symonds, Sanath Jayasuriya, and Mahela Jayawardene scored way lesser than Jadeja, and that shows how good he was despite not really having the "qualifications" for a top batsman
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