The second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been about much more than just Twenty20 cricket. Controversy dogged the tournament. If cheerleaders were the hot potato last year, it was security this time. The IPL was relocated to South Africa just in time to lose a few matches to rain. And then everyone, except Shah Rukh Khan’s Knights, began to play cricket. A pitch-invading dog, an undercover blog and strategic timeouts ensured the IPL stayed in the news for good reasons and bad. Now, with 57 matches behind us and just two to go, six fans look back at the best, worst and most bizarre moments of IPL 2009
Top 5 | Veteran Players
By Srinivas Bhogle
1 Matthew Hayden: The hallmark of Hayden’s career has been very long runs of good form. Once he hits two or three 50s, Hayden just keeps on going. This IPL has been very good for veterans like him who are playing for pride as well as the money involved. If Sachin Tendulkar has three shots for every ball, Hayden probably has at least two. The grounds and the fielding restrictions in the early overs allow players like him to break free.
2 Adam Gilchrist: Like Hayden, Gilchrist too is motivated by the need to play well in the latter half of his career. He has been scoring at a very good pace, especially capitalizing in the first four or five overs. The format is also suited to him at this stage in his career. If he knew he had to come back and bat again, as in a Test match, I doubt if he’d be so lethal.
3 Sachin Tendulkar:Tendulkar is one of those players who has done better this season than in the last one (when he was injured). In addition, last year, he had an entire season ahead after the IPL, which probably explains his performance. This year, he was fit and played like someone who wanted to prove a thing or two on the field. Unfortunately, his performance was marred by his below par captaincy.
Shane Warne. Mike Hutchings / Reuters
4 Shane Warne: Warne’s bowling actually improved, though he was quite good last time too. Also, he single- handedly managed a team that had hardly any match- winners. Shane Watson and Sohail Tanvir— both were superb last year—didn’t play this year. But Warne was flexible and had clearly worked hard with Munaf Patel.
5 Sanath Jayasuriya: Jayasuriya would have done even better if Tendulkar had given him a few more chances to bowl. Every team this year was looking for a good left-arm spinner. So Jayasuriya should have been utilized more. The moment he takes a few wickets, you can see the gleam in his eyes. This would have had a positive impact on his batting too. His scoring rate was lower this season, but he still made an impact.

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