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IPL Facts

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional men's Twenty20 cricket league, contested by ten teams based out of ten Indian cities. The league was founded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2007. It is usually held between March and May of every year and has an exclusive window in the ICC Future Tours Programme

The Indian Premier League has been a fan-favorite since its inception in 2008 and what a historic match it was when the talented Brendon McCullum smashed 158 runs off just 73 deliveries hitting 13 sixes and 10 boundaries taking Kolkata Knight Riders’ score to 222/3. IPL has been loved all around the globe not just by Indias but by people of diverse nationalities.

Chennai Super Kings have been the second-most successful franchise in the IPL with four titles, behind Mumbai Indians who lead the table with four. CSK were the first team to win consecutive titles, winning it in 2010 and 2011 before Mumbai Indians emulated the feat in 2019 and 2020.

The first Most Valuable Player Award came in the 3rd edition of IPL (i.e IPL 2010) when Sachin Tendulkar scored 618 runs for Mumbai Indians, interestingly he also won the Orange Cap in the tournament. Virat Kohli was the 2nd Indian who won the MVP award and it came in the 8th season of the IPL when he scored a staggering 973 runs.
Out of the thirteen teams that have played in the Indian Premier League since its inception, one team has won the competition five times, one team has won the competition four times, one team has won the competition twice and three other teams have won it once. Mumbai Indians are the most successful team in league's history in terms of the number of titles won. The Chennai Super Kings have won 4 titles, the Kolkata Knight Riders have won two titles, and the other three teams who have won the tournament are the Deccan Chargers, Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad. The current champions are the Chennai Super Kings who defeated the Kolkata Knight Riders by 27 runs in the final of the 2021 season securing their fourth title.
The Orange Cap is awarded to the top run-scorer in the IPL during a season. It is an ongoing competition with the leader wearing the cap throughout the tournament until the final game, with the eventual winner keeping the cap for the season.[81] Latest winner – Ruturaj Gaikwad – 635 Runs (2021).
The Purple Cap is awarded to the top wicket-taker in the IPL during a season. It is an ongoing competition with the leader wearing the cap throughout the tournament until the final game, with the eventual winner keeping the cap for the season.[82] Latest winner – Harshal Patel – 32 wickets (2021).
The award was called the "man of the tournament" till the 2012 season. The IPL introduced the Most Valuable Player rating system in 2013, the leader of which would be named the "Most Valuable Player" at the end of the season. Latest winner – Harshal Patel (2021).
The Fair Play Award is given after each season to the team with the best record of fair play. The winner is decided on the basis of the points the umpires give to the teams. After each match, the two on-field umpires, and the third umpire, scores the performance of both the teams.[83] Latest winner – Rajasthan Royals (2021).
The award was presented for the "best under-19 player" in 2008 and "best under-23 player" in 2009 and 2010, being called "Under-23 Success of the Tournament". In 2011 and 2012, the award was known as "Rising Star of the Year", while, in 2013, it was called "Best Young Player of the Season". Since 2014, the award has been called the "Emerging Player of the Year". In 2016, Mustafizur Rahman of Bangladesh was the first and only foreign player till date to win the Emerging Player of the Year award. Latest winner – Ruturaj Gaikwad (2021).
The Maximum Sixes Award, currently known as Unacademy. Let's Crack It Sixes Award for sponsorship reasons, is presented to the batsman who hits the most sixes in a season of the IPL. Latest winner – KL Rahul – 30 Sixes (2021).