IPL 2018: Five unique records in the IPL history

Records in any sport are meant to be broken. The game of cricket is no different. The shortest format of the game provides not only entertainment but also quality cricket. The IPL has witnessed almost everything in its ten-year history- heavy bats, LED stumps, Bollywood glamour, packed stadiums, colourful fans and what not!

A combination of all these, along with the cricket on display, has taken the tournament to new heights. A decade is a long time to make and break records. Along the way, this tournament has created some records that are unique and interesting in their own way.

Let us look at five such records, which will be remembered for years to come:

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#5 Chris Gayle- The King of Sixes

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Chris Gayle's stint at RCB was laden with records

There is no match for the flamboyant Jamaican, Chris Gayle, when it comes to the shortest format of the game. He never fails to provide electrifying starts for his franchise. Many a times in his RCB career, the ball was spotted on the roof of the Chinnaswamy Stadium!

He can mesmerize even the opposition with his power hitting and batting style. In the decade-long history of the IPL, no one has hit as many sixes as Chris Gayle. In 101 matches, he has as many as 265 sixes, most of which have come at his favorite hunting ground, the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

When it comes to hitting these massive sixes, there is no competition for this hard-hitting West Indian. Even Mr. IPL, Suresh Raina, is at a distant second in the list, with just 173 sixes. Gayle will continue to be the ‘sixer king’ of the IPL for a long, long time.

#4 Amit Mishra- Three IPL hat-tricks

Amit Mishra has scalped numerous wickets in the tournament

Many players dream about claiming a hat-trick in a T20 match. Then, there is this man called Amit Mishra, who has claimed three hat-tricks in the IPL alone.

In the 126 IPL matches, he has claimed 134 wickets at an average of 24.33. He has three four-wicket hauls and one five-wicket haul to his name, with career-best figures of 5/17.

He brought up his first hat-trick playing for the Delhi Daredevils in the very first season against the now defunct Deccan Chargers. Mishra's second hat-trick came for the Deccan Chargers against the Kings XI Punjab in 2011.

The third and record hat-trick came for Mishra came against the Pune Warriors India while representing the Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2013. It has truly been a dream IPL career for the Delhiite!

#3 Chennai Super Kings- 8 seasons, 8 playoffs

Chennai Super Kings

The Men in Yellow are the most consistent side in the IPL history. They have played a total of 132 games in the IPL over eight seasons, winning 79 of those. They boast of a staggering winning percentage of 59.84.

They have reached the knockout stages in all the eight seasons they have played in so far (2008-2015). Expectedly, no other franchise has accomplished this astonishing feat. The Super Kings have reached the final on six occasions, another terrific record for the IPL side.

MS Dhoni’s men have won the title twice, on back-to-back occasions in 2010 and 2011. He not only became the first ever Indian skipper to lift the trophy, but also the first and only captain to defend it. They have lost four times in the finals (2008,2012,2013,2015). They lost in the semi-finals(playoffs) twice, in 2009 and 2014.

Dhoni holds the record for the being longest-serving skipper of an IPL side. He led CSK in eight seasons so far.

#2 Aaron Finch- IPL's Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Aaron Finch

Not every player gets to play for different IPL franchise in every season! But the Australian Batsman, Aaron Finch has done something unique in the tournament's history. He is now the first player to have played for seven different franchises.

Finch started his IPL journey with the Rajasthan Royals in 2010. He subsequently moved to Delhi Daredevils and played the 2011 and 2012 season for them. The hard-hitting batsman then represented the Pune Warriors India in the 2013 IPL, before moving on to the Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2014. He donned the Mumbai Indians jersey in the IPL 2015, before being bought by the now-defunct Gujarat Lions for the 2016 and 2017 seasons.

In the 2018 Auctions, he was bought by the Kings XI Punjab franchise, thereby becoming the first player to play for seven different franchises. The Indian wicket-keeper batsman, Parthiv Patel, has also played for several franchises. He has represented six franchises during the first decade of the IPL.

Insterestingly, several players who have played for a single franchise for all the ten seasons. The list includes Harbhajan Singh (Mumbai Indians), Lasith Malinga (Mumbai Indians), Shaun Marsh (Kings XI Punjab) and Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bangalore).

#1 Virat Kohli- 4 centuries in a season

Virat Kohli is a beast when it comes to slamming international and domestic records!

IPL 2016 was all about one man, Virat Kohli. Everything went right for the Indian skipper, except the result of the finals, where his side lost to an inspired Sunrisers Hyderabad unit.

He had a stellar season with the bat for the Bangalore-based club. He amassed a record 973 runs in 16 innings in the season at an average of 81.08 and a strike-rate of 152.03.

No other player had made more than 733 runs in a season before IPL 2016. He added seven half-centuries and four centuries to his name in that edition of the tournament and notched up his highest IPL score of 113.

The right-handed batsman was in the form of his lifetime and was just unstoppable in then.

The RCB skipper scored a massive chunk of boundaries in the season, with 83 fours and 38 sixes. Scoring a century in the IPL is a daunting task, but this man got four to his name in a single season!