IPL trophy winners from 2008 to 2019
Since its inception in 2008, the IPL has evolved to become one of the most important cricketing events in a calendar year. The Indian Premier League is where 8 top teams battle it out on the cricket field across 8 weeks to determine 1 victor, the team that manages to best every other during the course of the tournament. Over the years, some teams have carved a place in history for themselves while others still chase the elusive title.
The IPL is not just one of the greatest platforms for youngsters to showcase their talent but also for experienced players to prove their mettle and grit. Therefore, it's one of the most coveted trophies that players wish to get their hands on. As the 2020 IPL Final is just around the corner with defending champions Mumbai Indians taking on first-time finalists Delhi Capitals, we take a trip down memory lane to see who lifted the IPL trophy in each of its previous 13 seasons.
1. Rajasthan Royals - 2008
The Jaipur-based Rajasthan Royals won the inaugural IPL under the leadership of Aussie spin legend Shane Warne. Rajasthan was a team that believed in investing in young talent.
Players like Ravindra Jadeja and Yusuf Pathan, who later went to enjoy great success in the IPL, were a part of the Rajasthan team that beat the Chennai Super Kings in the final to win the first-ever IPL.
2. Deccan Chargers - 2009
The IPL had been moved to South African for its second season and the Adam Gilchrist-led franchise had been extremely impressive that season.
With the likes of explosive batsmen like Herschelle Gibbs, Rohit Sharma and Gilchrist himself in their ranks, the Chargers were a force to reckon with. Pragyan Ojha was pivotal for them with the ball and they went on to beat the Royal Challengers Bangalore by just 6 runs to get their hands on the trophy.
3. Chennai Super Kings - 2010
After failing to win the final in 2008, MS Dhoni win the tournament just 2 years later when his Chennai Super Kings managed to topple the Mumbai Indians in the final.
The Men in Yellow were favourites to win the title from the very beginning as they possessed an extremely strong batting line-up consisting of Matthew Hayden, Suresh Raina, Albie Morkel and Dhoni himself. Suresh Raina was instrumental for Chennai that season as he scored 520 runs in a title-winning campaign.
4. Chennai Super Kings - 2011
The Chennai Super Kings became the first team in history to defend their IPL title after they won the trophy consecutively in 2010 and 2011. This time it was the highly successful opening partnership between Michael Hussey and Murali Vijay that worked wonders for them.
As ever, the middle order was extremely solid consisting of Raina, Badrinath, Bravo and Dhoni. They managed to win the final, which was held in their home-ground - the M.A Chidambaram stadium, in comprehensive fashion as they beat RCB by 58 runs.
5. Kolkata Knight Riders - 2012
Gautam Gambhir led the Kolkata Knight Riders to their first IPL win in 2012 after they managed to beat defending champions Chennai Super Kings. The Knight Riders lineup was star-studded with marquee foreign players such as Jacques Kallis, Brendon McCullum and Brett Lee.
Add to that some experienced players in Gambhir and Yusuf Pathan, and upcoming Indian talent like Manvinder Bisla and Iqbal Abdulla, and KKR had a team meant for glory.
6. Mumbai Indians - 2013
After taking over as captain halfway through the season, Rohit Sharma led Mumbai to their first ever IPL title in what was also Sachin Tendulkar's farewell IPL.
The Mumbai Indians had drafted an extremely strong team for that season and it included big names like Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Harbhajan Singh, Lasith Malinga and Kieron Pollard. After finishing at the top of the points table that season, Mumbai managed to beat arch-rivals CSK in the final.
7. Kolkata Knight Riders - 2014
Kolkata Knight Riders became only the second team in IPL history to win the trophy twice after Gambhir led them to their 2nd title in 2014. This time, the KKR lineup consisted of proven Indian talent like Manish Pandey and Robin Uthappa as well as some foreign match winners in the form of Sunil Narine and Andre Russell.
It was Manish Pandey's heroic 94 that was instrumental in KKR's final victory against Kings XI Punjab at Bengaluru.
8. Mumbai Indians - 2015
The Mumbai Indians had a horrific start to their campaign in 2015 after they managed to win just 2 of their first 7 games. The Rohit Sharma-led outfit managed to turn their fortunes around and made it to the final where they were met by MS Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings.
Batting first, Mumbai put up a massive 202 on the board and their bowlers managed to defend the total quite easily as the Indians picked up their 2nd IPL title.
9. Sunrisers Hyderabad - 2016
David Warner led Sunrisers Hyderabad to their first ever IPL title after his Orange Army managed to topple Virat Kohli's Royal Challengers in the final. While RCB had had an extremely successful campaign that year, the Sunrisers became the first team ever to win an IPL after playing the Eliminator.
Warner's men managed to hurdle past 2 knockout games before beating RCB by 6 runs in the final to win their first-ever title.
10. Mumbai Indians - 2017
After having lost to the Rising Pune Supergiant thrice in the season already, Mumbai were faced with the same opponent in the 2017 IPL final.
The Mumbai Indians, however, managed to turn the tides as they beat the Rising Pune Supergiant in a thrilling final that saw the Mumbai outfit win by just 1 run to lift their 3rd IPL trophy to become the most successful IPL team in history.
11. Chennai Super Kings - 2018
After having won their last IPL title back in 2011, the Chennai Super Kings managed to end their rather long trophy drought in their comeback season in 2018.
The Chennai batting lineup consisted of experienced veterans such as Shane Watson, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu and MS Dhoni while the bowling unit was well led by the vastly experienced Dwayne Bravo. CSK managed to beat the Sunrisers Hyderabad by 8 wickets in the final on the back of a magnificent century from Shane Watson.
12. Mumbai Indians - 2019
The Mumbai Indians reclaimed the mantle of being the most successful team ever after they won their 4th IPL title in 2019. The final was another nail-biting encounter against arch-rivals CSK. Lasith Malinga managed to defend just 9 runs in the final over to hand Mumbai their 2nd 1-run victory in IPL finals.