Ranking all IPL seasons from 2008 to 2024

The 18th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is currently treating fans to some exhilarating action day in and day out. The viewership numbers have gone through the roof, and the stadiums in different parts of the country have been packed to the rafters. While there have been plenty of batting performances of note, some bowlers have also shown that they are still integral characters in the shortest format. Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) lost four games in a row before chasing down a 246-run target against Punjab Kings (PBKS) on April 12. After a defeat like this, it is difficult to lift the spirits of a team. However, Punjab defended a target of 112 in their very next game against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). This unpredictability and competitiveness of the league contribute to its craze around the world, and cricket enthusiasts wait every year for this two-month extravaganza. In this article, CricTracker rates every season played so far in IPL from 2008 to 2024. 17. IPL 2011 IPL 2011 was quite a memorable cricket season for various reasons. One of the biggest of them was India winning the ODI World Cup only a few days before the commencement of the league. However, it was a dull season for the IPL as fans were still celebrating India's win in the global event for the first time in 28 years. They were cheering for the likes of MS Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, and Virat Kohli, among others, when they were representing the Men in Blue. All of a sudden, these stars were competing against each other in the IPL, and this didn't resonate with the fans. 16. IPL 2010 IPL 2010 was the first time Chennai Super Kings (CSK) won the tournament, and this was the start of a memorable era for the franchise. However, the season as a whole did not have too much craze. Fans did flock to the stadiums, but there were not too many close encounters to keep them interested. The intensity among the players was strangely low as well. 15. IPL 2013 IPL 2013 witnessed some pulsating encounters, but there was not too much to write home about as far as the quality of cricket. CSK and MI dominated throughout the season and eventually faced each other in the final. The latter went on to win the title, beating CSK in a low-scoring final at Eden Gardens. The teams in the bottom half of the table fared abysmally and were not able to push the stronger teams throughout the season. Also, the significant spot-fixing and betting scandal overshadowed the action on the field. 14. IPL 2009 IPL 2009 was moved to South Africa because of the schedule coinciding with the multi-phase 2009 Indian general elections. While the fans were not able to witness their favourite teams in action in the stadiums in India, they tuned in on television to watch the action. IPL 2009 garnered a whopping television audience of 200 million people in India alone. Now-defunct Deccan Chargers lifted the title under Adam Gilchrist. 13. IPL 2024 IPL 2024 has been termed by many fans as the most boring season in the league's history. This is because most of the venues like Eden Gardens, Wankhede Stadium, Arun Jaitley Stadium, and Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium produced flat decks where bowlers did not get too much assistance. Fans love watching fours and sixes, but most of them also enjoy a fair battle between bat and ball. However, IPL 2024 was all about batters ruling the roost and the bowlers trying their best to stay relevant. KKR won the title for the third time, beating SRH in the final. 12. IPL 2015 Once again, IPL 2015 saw CSK and MI thrashing other teams more often than not. The mid-table tussle was underwhelming, and this did not make the action as interesting as fans expected it to be. In the end, MI won their second title, edging past CSK in a one-sided final. 11. IPL 2021 IPL 2021 started in India but was suspended midway on May 4 after several players and support staff tested positive for COVID-19. The tournament restarted a few months later in the UAE. Apart from CSK and KKR's comebacks in the tournament, there were not too many interesting things going on in the season. Chennai defeated KKR to win their fourth title. 10. IPL 2020 IPL 2020 produced some exciting matches, but it struggled due to the restrictions imposed to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The tournament shifted to the UAE, and no fans were allowed in the stadiums. Players were kept in a bubble throughout the season. Indian fans were glued to their television sets as they had waited for quite some time to watch their favourite players in action. India did not have a series since March, and the IPL started in September. Fans witnessed some intriguing contests during the season. MI won their fifth title, beating Delhi Capitals in the final. 9. IPL 2022 Fans returned to the stadiums in IPL 2022 after most of the restrictions during the peak COVID-19 era were lifted. While the matches were played in India, the traditional home-away format was cancelled. Instead, the group stage of the tournament was played entirely in the state of Maharashtra, with Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, and Pune hosting the matches. The playoffs and final were held in Kolkata and Ahmedabad. Not many matches in IPL 2022 went down to the wire. MI and CSK, who have huge fan bases, did not fare well in the tournament. Gujarat Titans won the title in their debut season. Another new team, Lucknow Super Giants, also made it to the playoffs. However, while their performances were commendable, some fans felt that the tournament lacked the intense rivalries that develop over time. 8. IPL 2012 IPL 2012 was one of the more exciting seasons in the league. The season gave fans many last-over thrillers, and some future legends rose to fame like Sunil Narine and Ajinkya Rahane. Narine played a key role in helping KKR win their maiden IPL title. The final between KKR and CSK was a spectacular encounter with the former chasing down a 191-run target to bag the trophy. Fierce competition was one of the major highlights of this season. 7. IPL 2017 IPL 2017 was deprived of two passionate fan bases as CSK and RR were banned. Apart from a few nail-biting encounters, most of the matches were one-sided. There were not too many last-over finishes, something that has made the IPL a fan favourite. The surfaces in Pune and Delhi were sluggish, and they produced low-scoring encounters. Virat Kohli also missed the early goings of the season, and this proved to be a dampener for many. New teams - Rising Pune Supergiant and Gujarat Lions - could not engage the fans. Everyone knew that this was their last season in the league, which made it tough for them to associate with the teams. 6. IPL 2019 IPL 2019 was a sleeper hit. Some remarkable moments from the season are still fresh in the memories of cricket aficionados. Ravichandran Ashwin's non-striker-end run-out of Jos Buttler sparked a 'spirit of the game' debate across the cricket fraternity. David Warner and Jonny Bairstow formed a consistent pairing at the top of the order for Sunrisers Hyderabad, and their chemistry on the field was a treat to watch. The final match was a humdinger of a contest between arch-rivals CSK and MI. The latter won the match by one run as Lasith Malinga's pinpoint yorker got the better of Shardul Thakur. 5. IPL 2018 One of the main attractions of IPL 2018 was the return of CSK and RR after serving two-year suspensions. MS Dhoni had one of his best seasons with the bat and guided his team to the title. Rishabh Pant also established himself as one of the most talented youngsters in Indian cricket, scoring a staggering 684 runs. Also, almost every team was in playoff contention till the last week of the competition. This meant that the intensity was high in almost every game in the season. 4. IPL 2016 While CSK and RR did not play this season, the new franchise, Gujarat Lions, stepped up to the plate and delivered some resounding performances to finish at the top of the points table at the end of the league phase. However, SRH beat them in Qualifier 2 to progress to the finals. The Orange Army beat RCB in the final by just eight runs to win their maiden title. Virat Kohli had a mesmerising season with the bat, finishing with 973 runs from 16 matches - the most ever in an IPL season. MS Dhoni scoring 23 runs in the last over to win a game against Punjab Kings and AB de Villiers' 79* off 47 balls in Qualifier 1 against Gujarat, after RCB were reeling at 29/5, are still remembered fondly. 3. IPL 2008 The inaugural season of the IPL was met with a lot of excitement. While India won the T20 World Cup in 2007, the format was still new to many. Also, it was interesting to see the players who were sharing the dressing rooms for all these years suddenly trying to plot each other's downfall on the field. Fans loved the fresh concept, even as teams were figuring out the nitty-gritty of the league. Brendon McCullum set the tournament ablaze with a spectacular century in the opening match between KKR and RCB. Seeing legendary cricketers like Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Adam Gilchrist, and Sanath Jayasuriya, among others, playing alongside Indian youngsters was extraordinary. 2. IPL 2014 IPL 2014 is one of the most thrilling IPL seasons for several reasons. Two of the best catches in IPL history were taken in this season. Chris Lynn grabbed a stunner against RCB to dismiss AB de Villiers while Kieron Pollard took a breathtaking catch against Rajasthan Royals, showing his commendable athleticism and game awareness. KKR's comeback was another unforgettable highlight of the season. They recovered from a slow start and won eight games in a row en route to the final. The Gautam Gambhir-led side defeated Punjab Kings in a high-scoring final, chasing a 200-run target with three wickets and as many balls to spare. Aditya Tare's six against RR for MI helped them chase down a 190-run target in 14.3 overs and helped Rohit and Co. seal playoff qualification. Two runs were required off the last ball and Tare, who was facing his first delivery in the match, hit a six off James Faulkner. Furthermore, Yusuf Pathan scored an epic 72 off 22 balls against SRH to help KKR finish in the top two. 1. IPL 2023 IPL 2023 is considered by many as the most entertaining season in the league's history. The home-away format returned for the first time since the COVID-19 era. There were thirty-seven 200-plus totals scored that season, a record at that time. Rinku Singh's five sixes off the last five balls of the KKR versus GT clash to win the match turned heads. Apart from Rinku, other youngsters like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, and Tushar Deshpande also made a mark. In fact, Yashasvi slammed the fastest IPL fifty off just 13 balls against KKR. The league got a new Orange Cap winner, and this time it was India's batting prodigy, Shubman Gill. The playoff qualification also went down to the last couple of games. RCB, MI, RR, and LSG were in the race till the final stages of the round-robin phase. Dhoni's craze wowed the cricket fraternity as his fans turned every stadium Yellow. Social media banters and on-field drama kept fans hooked.

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Ranking all IPL seasons from 2008 to 2024

The Indian Premier League is currently in the middle of its 18th season and fans are witnessing some exhilarating cricket from the 10 participating teams.

11. IPL 2021

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