IPL's best final over finishes

Given the T20 format's propensity to provide late over heists, the Indian Premier League has been replete with many 11th hour heists that have proceeded to leave both the spectators and pundits bemused.

In the latest addition to the 11th-hour adventurism, Krishnappa Gowtham registered his name in the cricketing folklore as his 33-ball-11 helped Rajasthan Royals chase down the target of 168 against the Mumbai Indians, which at one stage, looked well-nigh impossible.

In this blog today, we will celebrate many such last over heists achieved by the batsmen during the course of ten years of the IPL.

Here's the compilation:

#5 Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Kolkata, 2013

Jadeja's cameo takes CSK home

In a bid to counter the spin threat of Sachitra Senanayake, Ravi Chandran Ashwin opened the innings for CSK alongside Michael Hussey. The move backfired to devastating proportions, as CSK lost wickets at regular intervals as none of Suresh Raina, Murali Vijay, MS Dhoni, and Subramaniam Badrinath reached double figures in response to KKR's poultry 9-119.

Hussey bade his time with a 51-ball 40 and by the time he got out, the scoreboard read 6-89 and 37 still required off 20 balls. In walked Ravindra Jadeja.

Jadeja smashed a four and a six off Balaji to bring the equation down to 27 off last 3 overs. But it was far from over as the 18th over was to be bowled by Sunil Narine. Jadeja struck 10 off Narine's over to bring the equation down to 17 off the last 2, before proceeding to smack the first two balls of the penultimate over to virtually seal the deal for his side.

He finished with 36 off just 14 balls, to back it with his bowling figures of 3-20, to earn himself a much deserving Man of the Match award.

#4 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Deccan Chargers, Johannesburg, 2009

Rohit's blitz against Mortaza

Things had finally appeared to be falling into place for the Knight Riders, after enduring a dismal season, in a clash against the eventual champions Deccan Chargers.

Rohit Sharma was batting at 10 off 7 balls and had barely got his eyes in when he was confronted by a stiff equation of 21 off the final over. Mashrafe Mortaza, a seasoned international bowler, who was also making his IPL debut, was to bowl the final over.

Things started on a disastrous note for Mortaza as he was no-balled for having just 3 fielders inside the circle instead of four, which was dispatched to the square-leg boundary by Rohit. He went for a single off the next ball and was back on strike with the equation now reading 14 off 4 balls.

He then proceeded to hit Mortaza for a six over midwicket, four to wide long-on and signed off with a Brobdingnagian six over backward square-leg to cap off a memorable last-over heist sending the KKR team and Mortaza into the realms of agony.

#3 Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, Chennai, 2012

Albie Morkel plays a match-winning cameo for CSK

In the 2012 season of the Indian Premier League, the Royal Challengers from Banglore looked well on course for a huge away win at the Chepauk against the eventual runners-up Chennai Super Kings.

After having made an imposing 205 runs in 20 overs, RCB, while defending still had 43 runs in the bag after 18 overs. RCB skipper Daniel Vettori turned to Virat Kohli to bowl the 19th over. All of Chennai's hopes hinged on Albie Morkel who had just come in. Morkel proceeded to tee into Kohli taking 28 off his over while hitting three massive sixes over long-on and a couple of boundaries to reduce the equation down to 15 of the last six balls.

Though Morkel got out in the last over, Bravo and Jadeja finished off the job to achieve an improbable win.

#2 Mumbai Indians vs Rajasthan Royals, Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Rayudu's sensational innings take Mumbai Indians to the playoffs

MI celebrate after Rayudu's sensational heist was a do-or-die game for both the sides, especially the Mumbai Indians, who needed to chase down 190 in 14.3 overs to knock the Royals out of the tournament on net run-rate and advance to the playoffs of the 2012 season.

Corey Anderson was leading the charge for MI with some pulsating hitting, but when Rayudu walked out, they still needed 82 off 31 balls. Rayudu proceeded to smash four 4s off the first five deliveries he had faced.

Rayudu's blitz eventually brought the equation down to 8 off the last two balls, and he reduced it to a further two off the final delivery with a six over long-leg. However, in a bid to complete the second run, Rayudu was run-out the next ball, but Aditya Tare's six off the very next ball ensured Rayudu's blitz didn't go in vain as MI pipped RR by one decimal point to knock them out of the tournament.

#1 Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Pune Warriors India, Bengaluru, 2012

The win was engineered on the genius of AB de Villiers.

Chasing 183, after Pune had set 6-182 in their quota of 20 overs thanks to a belligerent 69 off 45 balls by Robin Utthappa, RCB were fairly comfortable with Chris Gayle(81 off 48 balls) in full-flow.

But a yorker from Ashish Nehra to Chris Gayle in the 16th over brought AB de Villiers to the crease with RCB still needing in excess of 10 an over.

de Villiers struck a four and a six in the first ten balls he faced bringing the target down to 21 off the final over. Tiwary took the single off the first ball, to bring AB on strike against Nehra. AB duly scooped the next delivery past short fine-leg for a boundary, and then smacked the next two balls for sixes over long off and long leg respectively, to bring the equation to four off two balls, and Tiwary completed the proceedings with a last ball six to cap off a memorable win for RCB engineered on the genius of one man- AB de Villiers.