Another interesting season of the Indian Premier League is going on and the reason for that is some excellent batting displays from the players. We have witnessed Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma in their full flow in the IPL history but uncapped batters like Yashasvi Jaiswal have always been the cherry on top of the cake throughout the glorious years of the cash-rich league.
After a remarkable century against Mumbai Indians earlier this season, the swashbuckling opener hammered the fastest IPL fifty on Thursday to create history. He played an unbeaten innings of 98 runs off just 47 balls against the Kolkata Knight Riders to win the game for his side.
The southpaw completed his half-century in only 13 balls smashing the record jointly held by KL Rahul and Pat Cummins at 14 balls.
Let us take a look at the top five innings by uncapped players in the history of the IPL.
#5 Rajat Patidar (112 runs against Lucknow Super Giants) in IPL 2022
It was an eliminator of the IPL 2022 and RCB was under pressure after batting first against Lucknow Super Giants. Skipper Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli got out cheaply with only Glenn Maxwell being the biggest name in the lineup after that.
Who thought that Rajat Patidar would play one of the most defining knocks of the IPL that day? The right-hander played a sensational knock of unbeaten 112 runs off just 54 deliveries and put RCB in a winning position with 207 on the board at the iconic Eden Gardens Stadium.
On the other hand, Lucknow tried their level best of chasing the big total but failed to achieve that in the end and lost the encounter by 12 runs. Rajat Patidar was awarded player of the match for his outstanding show at the crunch moment.
#4 Manish Pandey (114 runs against Deccan Chargers) in IPL 2009
It was the year 2009 and RCB were competing against Deccan Chargers in Centurion. At that time, the franchise from Bangalore involved some huge names including Rahul Dravid, Ross Taylor, Jacques Kallis, and Anil Kumble with the experienced Indian spinner leading the side.
Manish Pandey became the first-ever Indian player to score a century in the IPL
After batting first RCB posted a respectable total of 170 runs on the board, thanks to a phenomenal century from Manish Pandey who scored 114 runs off just 73 balls. It was a complete effort from the right-hander as no other batter played a defining knock that day.
His innings helped RCB win the match by 12 runs and Pandey was adjudged as the Player of the Match for his splendid show. Pandey’s ton was the first-ever century scored by an Indian batter in the IPL.
#3 Shaun Marsh (115 runs against Rajasthan Royals) in IPL 2008
One of Australia’s great players, Shaun Marsh didn’t debut at that time when he scored a sensational hundred for his side Kings XI Punjab (Punjab Kings) in 2008. It was under the leadership of Yuvraj Singh when this match took place against Rajasthan Royals.
Scoring against Rajasthan was a big achievement for him as they eventually went on to win the title that year. Bowlers like Sohail Tanvir and Shane Warne were capable of sending any batsman back to the dugout but Marsh was unstoppable that day.
He scored 115 runs off 69 balls which helped Punjab post a total of 221 runs in their 20 overs. He got good support from the other end from James Hopes and Yuvraj Singh who scored 51 runs and 49 runs respectively. In the end, RR lost the battle by 41 runs with the big total on the board creating pressure on the Royals’ batters.
#2 Paul Valthaty (120 runs against Chennai Super Kings) in IPL 2011
Paul Valthaty scored a phenomenal 120 against CSK in 2011
Many must have forgotten him now but his century has been one of the finest in the IPL history because of the opponent as well as the time. Paul Valthaty played an unbeaten innings of 120 runs while chasing against Chennai Super Kings in the year 2011.
After batting first, CSK scored a good total of 188 in Mohali which looked like a winning total at that time. Now, it was Punjab’s turn to showcase their talent.
Skipper Adam Gilchrist and Shaun Marsh went back to the pavilion cheaply whereas Valthaty stayed till the end and returned only after winning the game for his side. He remained unbeaten till the game ended and became the hero of the match.
#1 Yashasvi Jaiswal (124 runs against Mumbai Indians) in IPL 2023
Yashasvi Jaiswal is having a phenomenal outing this time in the IPL 2023. He has produced some good knocks in the past but this year, the southpaw has established himself as the swashbuckling opener who will be recognised for long.
In the 42nd match of this year’s IPL, Jaiswal scored a magnificent 124 runs off just 62 balls. His innings included 8 sixes and 16 fours which helped Rajasthan Royals post a mammoth 212 on the board.
Though RR lost the battle in the end due to Tim David’s splendid heroics, it was Jaiswal who earned praise from the cricket fans.