Top 5 highest scores in an unsuccessful chase in the IPL ft. Rohit Sharma
The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) beat the Mumbai Indians (MI) by 20 runs in the 29th match of IPL 2024 at the Wankhede Stadium on April 14, Sunday.
Dubbed 'El Clasico', the game lived up to its expectations with the likes of Shivam Dube, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and MS Dhoni entertaining the capacity crowd.
CSK, batting first, put up a decent total of 206/4 in their 20 overs, which MI, despite skipper Rohit Sharma's century, could not chase down.
It is interesting to note that Sharma's is the first and only ton in an unsuccessful chase in the IPL so far. There have been, however, other top scores in such events.
In this listicle, we bring to you the top five highest scores in an unsuccessful chase in the IPL.
#1 Rohit Sharma (105*)
MI skipper Rohit Sharma comes first on this list owing to the unbeaten 105 he scored against CSK in the 'El Clasico' held at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.
Chasing a daunting target of 207 runs, MI could not quite accelerate at the right moment to get momentum under their wings.
Sharma, however, carried his bat and ended up hitting 11 boundaries and five sixes in his 63-ball knock. Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma were the only other batters in the MI lineup who put up a bit of a fight with scores of 23 and 31, respectively. None of the other batters helped their skipper out, and the hosts ended up losing the game by 20 runs.
#2 Virat Kohli (92*)
Former India captain Virat Kohli, who is among the very few players in the tournament to have remained loyal to just one franchise - Royal Challengers Bengaluru - also features on this list.
His claim to fame is the unbeaten 92 he scored off just 62 deliveries against MI in the 2018 edition of the IPL.
MI batted first at the Wankhede, and Kohli's perennial competitor, Rohit Sharma top-scored for them with 94 off just 52 balls, although he walked out to bat at number four, allowing Suryakumar Yadav and Evin Lewis to open the innings.
MI set RCB a target of 214 to chase down, which the latter failed to get by some distance - 46 runs. Apart from Kohli's heroics, none of the RCB batters could stand up and take the fight to the opposition.
#3 Sanju Samson (119*)
RR captain Sanju Samson also comes on this list thanks to the 119 not out he scored against Punjab Kings (formerly known as Kings XI Punjab) in IPL 2021. Played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, PBKS scored 221-6 in their allotted 20 overs.
KL Rahul with 91 and Deepak Hooda with 64 propped up the score of PBKS. In reply, RR came excruciatingly close to chasing it down but fell four runs short of it. Samson, who scored his runs off just 63 balls, could not quite help his team get over the line and received no support from the other end.
#4 Wriddhiman Saha (115)
One of the finest knocks ever played in a losing cause in the IPL came from former India and Bengal wicketkeeper-batter Wriddhiman Saha. Saha scored a 55-ball 115 for his side Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the final of the 2014 IPL.
Saha had already played a vital role for his side in the lead-up to the final and did everything he could for them to win the trophy. However, Manish Pandey and Piyush Chawla had other plans, and KKR went on to win the game.
#5 Yusuf Pathan (100)
Yusuf Pathan, one of the finest batters that India has seen in the shortest format of the game, played a sensational knock when scoring a 37-ball ton against MI at the Wankhede in Mumbai when turning up for RR. Pathan walked out to bat after RR had been set a total of 213 to chase down but got run out at an unfortunate time.
Had Pathan remained at the crease, things may have looked different for RR in that game, but unfortunately, it was not to be. The elder brother of former India all-rounder Irfan, Yusuf is currently contesting the 2024 general elections on a Trinamool Congress ticket.