IPL 2022: Best XI of players based on performance in playoffs

The 15th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has just concluded with Gujarat Titans claiming the title in their debut season. It was a brilliant season for the Hardik Pandya-led side, which finished at the top of the points table. The Titans got the job done in the playoffs, winning back-to-back matches to claim the title. The tail-end of the season is when the big game players really have to step up. We witnessed several match-winning performances during the course of the playoffs. On the other hand, a few reputed stars failed to bring out their A-game in the playoffs. Perhaps, the pressure of a knockout game got the better of them. In this article, we look at the Best XI of teams in playoffs: 1. KL Rahul KL Rahul fifty vs LSG. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Although KL Rahul ended up on losing side in the Eliminator, his knock deserves some praise. The opening batter scored 79 runs off 58 balls in a chase of just over 200 runs. One can argue that he could have been a bit more aggressive with his approach, and gone after the bowlers in the middle overs. Nevertheless, Rahul did a pretty decent job with the bat. No batter except Deepak Hooda could contribute well with the bat, and supported his skipper well from one end. The former Punjab Kings skipper ended yet another successful season with the bat, as he smashed 616 runs in 15 innings at a staggering average of 51.33. And, he also managed to take Lucknow to the playoffs in their debut season, which is surely a big positive going forward. 2. Jos Buttler (WK) Jos Buttler. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Jos Buttler has enjoyed a dream season with the bat in IPL 2022. The English batter stood up for his side in the knockout games, as he put on two terrific displays. The right-handed batter scored 89 runs off 56 balls against Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 1. Although that was not sufficient enough to win the game for Rajasthan, it was quite a valiant effort. Buttler scored his fourth century of the season in Qualifier 2 against Royal Challengers Bangalore smashing an unbeaten knock of 106 runs off just 60 balls. That knock helped the Royals earn a spot in the finals for the first time since 2008, and he was also awarded the player of the match award. Jos Buttler was again the top scorer for his side in the finals, scoring 39 runs off 35 balls. But the Royals collapsed with the bat posting only 130 runs with the bat. Buttler also won the Orange Cap for scoring a whopping 863 runs in the entire season. 3. Shubman Gill Shubman Gill. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Shubman Gill stepped up for his side in the last couple of matches. In fact, he was instrumental in Gujarat’s chases in the playoffs. The Indian batter scored a quickfire knock of 35 runs off just 21 balls in Qualifier 1 against Rajasthan Royals. Although it was not a big innings, it did have quite a bit of impact on a huge chase in terms of getting off the blocks quickly for the Titans. In the final, Shubman Gill orchestrated a mature inning, scoring an unbeaten knock of 45 runs off just 43 balls. He batted right through the 18 overs, helping Gujarat chase down a tricky target if 131 runs. The eventual champions lost a couple of wickets in the middle, but Shubman Gill’s calm innings really steadied the ship for them. Hence, the youngster certainly deserves a spot in the Best XI of teams in playoffs. 4. Rajat Patidar Rajat Patidar. (Photo Source: Twitter/IPL) Rajat Patidar rose to the occasion during the playoffs, as he was among the better players for Bangalore during the playoffs. He scored a blistering knock of 112 runs off just 54 balls against Lucknow in the Eliminator, which helped his side post a huge first innings total. He came into bat after Bangalore lost their skipper, Faf du Plessis in the first over itself. The way he held the innings together was quite commendable. Rajat backed up his performance with another good knock in the Qualifier 2. He scored 58 runs off 42 balls against Rajasthan Royals, which meant that Bangalore atleast had something to defend. The 28-year-old batted for almost 15 overs, scoring four fours, and clearing the fence on three occasions. Patidar was included in the squad as a replacement player and was brought into the XI towards the end of the league stage of IPL, but he made the most of his opportunities. 5. Hardik Pandya (C) Hardik Pandya. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Hardik Pandya was not only a fantastic leader throughout IPL 2022 but also contributed with both, bat and ball during the course of the playoffs. The Indian all-rounder led Gujarat Titans to IPL glory, after thoroughly dominating the season, right from the onset. He scored a quickfire knock of 40 runs in the seven-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 1, and also chipped in with a couple of overs. Hardik also managed to pick up the key wicket of Devdutt Padikkal at a crucial juncture in the game. In the final, he was awarded the player of the match, for his all-round performance. The skipper constructed a well-made innings of 34 runs, and picked up three wickets in his four-over spell. Moreover, his wickets included some big fishes in the form of Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson and Shimron Hetymer. The wicket of Jos Buttler really turned around the game for Gujarat, given that Rajasthan lacked firepower in their lower middle-order. 6. David Miller David Miller. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) David Miller has had an IPL season of some magnitude, given how often he stood up for his side in high-pressure chases. The South African batter scored a match-winning knock of 68 runs off just 38 balls against Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 1. He smashed three huge sixes off Prasidh Krishna’s final over to take the Titans into the finals. The Protea batter followed it up with another handy knock in the final, where he scored an unbeaten knock of 32 runs off just 19 balls. Gujarat had found themselves in a somewhat tricky situation when Miller walked out to bat in the middle, and the left-handed batter started taking charge right from ball one. In the end, it was quite a comfortable chase for Gujarat, who won with over 10 balls to spare. 7. Deepak Hooda Deepak Hooda. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Deepak Hooda played just one innings in the playoffs, but such was the impact of his knock that he certainly makes into this lineup. The Lucknow batter scored 45 runs off just 26 balls against Bangalore in the Eliminator to keep LSG in the hunt during the steep chase. Unfortunately, his efforts weren’t enough to take his side into the next round. However, given the situation he walked out to bat, it was quite a decent knock from his side. In a chase of 208 runs, Hooda walked out into the middle, with the score reading two wickets down fo just 41 runs. Hence, it was Deepak Hooda’s short cameo which brought LSG back into the chase. The 27-year-old had a successful season with the bat, as he amassed 451 runs in 14 innings at an average of just over 32. 8. Rashid Khan Rashid Khan (Photo Source: Twitter) Rashid Khan went about his business in the playoffs rather silently. He was as effective as expected and lived up to his reputation in the entire season as well. The Afghanistan spinner conceded just 15 runs off his four overs in Qualifier 1, although he did not manage to pick up a wicket. But given that most of the bowlers conceded more than 10 runs per over, Rashid Khan did a brilliant job. In the finals, Rashid Khan again conceded the bare minimum. The wrist spinner gave away just 18 runs in his four-over spell, and also managed to pick up the wicket of Devdutt Padikkal. He applied the pressure in the middle stages of the innings, which made sure that Rajasthan did not chip away with easy runs. His contributions with both, bat and ball this season has played a huge role in Titans’ charge towards the title. 9. Mohsin Khan Mohsin Khan. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Mohsin Khan was the pick of the bowlers for Lucknow in their defeat against Bangalore in the Eliminator. He conceded just 25 runs off four overs, picking up the crucial wicket of Faf du Plessis in the first over itself. The left-arm pacer hardly gave any easy runs, and smartly varied his pace. The rest of the bowling attack went for plenty of runs, as no bowler except Mohsin Khan had an economy rate of less than 9. Avesh Khan, leader of LSG’s pace attack also conceded 44 runs in four overs, going at an economy rate of 11. Mohsin Khan had a fruitful season with Lucknow as well picking 14 wickets in just nine matches and his overall economy rate read 5.96 which was exceptional. 10. Josh Hazlewood Josh Hazlewood. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Josh Hazlewood put up a couple of good performances in the playoffs. He managed to pick up three wickets in his four-over spell against Lucknow in the Eliminator. He did go for a few runs but managed to get the key wicket of KL Rahul right towards the end of the chase. The Australian pacer was also effective in the second Qualifier which ended on sour note for Bangalore. The tall pacer picked up two wickets in his four-over spell, conceding just 23 runs. Moreover, most of the bowlers went for plenty of runs, given that Jos Buttler was the man on a mission in the chase. The Aussie quick managed to pick up the wickets of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Devdutt Padikkal, which at least kept Bangalore in the game for a bit longer. 11. Prasidh Krishna Prasidh Krishna after dismissing Virat Kohli. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Prasidh Krishna did not have a great outing against Gujarat in Qualifier 1, where he conceded 40 runs in 3.3 overs, as David Miller took him to the cleaners in the final over. However, he bounced back pretty well, and picked up three wickets against Bangalore in Qualifier 2. He picked up the wickets of Virat Kohli, Dinesh Karthik which completely changed the game and restricted RCB to an under-par total. Again in the final, he was taken for runs as he conceded 40 at an economy rate of 10. He did manage to pick up an early wicket in the form of Wriddhiman Saha, and was in fact quite good with the new ball. Overall, Prasidh Krishna does make the cut into the side, given that he delivered a match winning performance against Bangalore in the second Qualifier.

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