Ruturaj Gaikwad (CSK): After a breakthrough campaign last year, Gaikwad had an indifferent first half of the IPL this season, but under returning skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the opener showed his true colours with a match-defining knock against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Gaikwad’s innings had class and authority stamped all over it, and the way he navigated the express pace of Umran Malik spoke volumes about his gift of seeing the ball early and playing it late. Even more impressive, though, was his intelligence in regularly piercing the field en route to 99 off 57 balls that helped set up a much-needed win for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK)
BCCI
Devon Conway (CSK): While Gaikwad was going all guns blazing at one end, Conway was more than keeping up with his opening partner at the other. Justifying CSK’s bid for him at the auction, the Kiwi southpaw showed flashes of his coach Stephen Fleming in how he engineered his innings of 85 not out on Sunday. Choosing his shots more wisely than he had earlier in the tournament, Conway made full use of the extra pace in the SRH bowling to time his way to eight fours and four sixes
BCCI
Wriddhiman Saha (GT): Brought in to replace a misfiring Matthew Wade, Saha delivered at the third time of asking, picking his former team, SRH, to be at the receiving end of an effervescent 68 off 38 balls. Chasing an imposing target of 196, Saha’s tempo at the top helped set up the chase for the Gujarat Titans (GT), giving them the momentum they needed to keep pace with the required run rate. Even though he could not bat till the end and was bowled by Malik, Saha had done enough to justify his place alongside Shubman Gill at the top of the GT batting order
BCCI
Nitish Rana (KKR): Fortunes can change in the blink of an eye in the IPL. The latest example of that is Rana, who turned around an inconsistent season for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) with two fabulous innings in the space of four days. First, it was Rana’s belligerent 57 that gave a veneer of respectability to the KKR batting against the Delhi Capitals (DC) on Thursday. Then, in a potentially season-altering victory on Monday, Rana played the role of experienced foil for Rinku Singh as the two took KKR over the line against the Rajasthan Royals (RR), wrapping up one of the best IPL weeks in purple and gold for Rana
BCCI
Nicholas Pooran (SRH): When Pooran came into bat against CSK with SRH at 88 for three in the 10th over, the game was in the balance. Even though the Orange Army fell well short of the target in the end, Pooran did himself no harm by bludgeoning his way to an unbeaten 64 off just 33 balls. The Caribbean flamboyance that Pooran is known for was visible from ball one, as he took the attack to the CSK bowlers, scoring freely against both spin and pace, as evident from his nine boundaries, including six maximums on the night
BCCI
Rovman Powell (DC): He may not yet have the starpower of his compatriots, but there is little doubt that Powell is currently the best West Indian finisher in the tournament. His explosive 33 in double quick time was the difference between DC slumping against KKR and winning the game with one over to spare. Against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Powell seemed primed to repeat the trick, motoring his way to 35 off just 20 balls, before Mohsin Khan upset the apple cart by getting rid of him
BCCI
Rahul Tewatia (GT): The death overs in the IPL are a slugfest between bat and ball at the end of which Tewatia always comes out on top. In another couple of masterful finishing acts, Tewatia put paid to the SRH and the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) bowling to steer GT to four more points over the last week. Against SRH, Tewatia seemed to be running away with the game before Rashid Khan finished things off in style. Against RCB, however, Tewatia took the lead, and in tandem with David Miller, polished off a target of 171 with three balls to spare. Should he continue at this rate, Tewatia will undoubtedly be in the running for a Team India call-up at this year’s T20 World Cup
BCCI
Rashid Khan (GT): It has not been an outstanding week for Rashid with the ball. He was taken to the cleaners against SRH and only picked up one wicket in his next two matches. But Rashid is not in this week’s XI owing to his bowling. Instead, his place has been secured by one of the greatest last-over cameos in IPL history, during which Rashid smashed SRH’s Marco Jansen for three sixes in four balls to land a stinging sucker punch on his former team. While nobody in the IPL doubted Rashid’s batting before, his heroic finish against SRH means that he is now a genuine match-winning all-rounder for Gujarat
BCCI
Umran Malik (SRH): The man whose pace and stock show no signs of slowing down was at it again this week, in a valiant spell against GT that saw him bag the man of the match award, even though it was the opposition who clinched the points. Malik’s five wickets for just 25 runs involved four clean bowled dismissals, including both of GT’s openers. Even though he followed it up with a wicketless outing against CSK, Malik is improving every week and remains a strong contender for subsequent team of the week places as the IPL group stage heads towards its culmination
BCCI
Mohsin Khan (LSG): Fast bowling is not often considered a cerebral art, but Mohsin is doing his bit to change that with a string of impressive displays for LSG. Against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Friday, Mohsin picked up three for 24, with the prized scalp of Liam Livingstone being the pick of his wickets. Two days later against DC, Mohsin was virtually unplayable, grabbing four for 16 in his four overs, with both David Warner and Rishabh Pant losing the battle of patience against this 23-year-old speedster
BCCI
Kuldeep Yadav (DC): For the second time this season, Kuldeep was the most decisive player for DC against KKR, with his four for 14 stemming the KKR surge in the first innings. Combining to perfection with skipper Pant behind the stumps, Kuldeep got the crucial breakthroughs of Shreyas Iyer and Andre Russell besides trapping Sunil Narine leg before wicket. Although similar brilliance eluded him against LSG, Kuldeep did enough against his ex-teammates to make it to the team of the week besides staying in the hunt for the Purple Cap
BCCI
