Ashutosh Sharma celebrates as DC defeats LSG in a thriller
From top-order collapses to the rescues by the middle order, the roller coaster of emotions has been surreal in the recently concluded IPL season. But in the end, the tournament was surely dominated by the batters more than expected, as the clutch knocks powered by some unstoppable boundaries made the game. Let’s take a look at some of the top-notch knocks in the IPL 2025 season.
When the stakes are high, the Sarpanch Saab can step up for his team and help them to turn the tables. Shreyas Iyer-led Punjab Kings went against Mumbai Indians in the second Qualifier of the tournament. Mumbai had already defeated Gujarat Titans in the Eliminator, while Punjab lost the Qualifier 1 match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. When both teams met each other at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Punjab won the toss and decided to field first. Mumbai Indians showcased a dominant batting display, ending with 203 runs for the loss of 6 wickets.
Coming out to chase, Punjab Kings surely didn’t have a good start, and the team was 3 wickets down for 72, by 7.5 overs. The captain, Shreyas Iyer, came in at number 4, and with the help of Nehal Wadhera, he was able to create a well-set partnership for the 4th wicket. Iyer took the opportunity of the overs being bowled by Ashwani towards the death and smashed as many runs as he could through the same. The best part remains the yorker of Jasprit Bumrah, which he effortlessly played for a four. In the 19th over bowled by Ashwani, Iyer smashed four sixes and finished the game for Punjab, scoring 87 runs in 41 balls. Although not a century, the pressure under which this knock was played makes it the best in the IPL.
In IPL 2025, the youngsters have been more impressive, with some of them making headlines while others are making a spot for the Indian cricket team. One such name remains Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who played a top knock in a match against the Gujarat Titans, despite being just 14 years in age. This match was being played in Jaipur, and Rajasthan’s bowlers were being bashed badly at their home ground. Gujarat Titans were batting first and finished their innings at 209 runs for the loss of 4 wickets, with the help of Gill and Buttler’s half-centuries.
Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Suryavanshi came for the chase, and both youngsters were absolutely on fire with their performances. Suryavanshi had a great start, as he smashed 26 runs in an over against Ishant Sharma in the powerplay. Later on, he continued his aggressive batting style to reach the score of 50 runs in just 17 balls. Continuing the momentum, Vaibhav also scored his maiden IPL century in just 35 balls, being the youngest player to score a century in IPL history. For this rapid-fire knock, Vaibhav Suryavanshi also won the POTM award in this match.
After having a poor form in the TATA IPL 2025, Abhishek Sharma produced one of the finest IPL knocks by an Indian in the match against the Punjab Kings. Winning the toss, Punjab decided that it would be better for them to bat first. This decision surely did come out in their favour, as Shreyas Iyer’s half-century, with a cameo by Marcus Stoinis and other players, the team was able to reach a total of 245 runs. The target was surely massive ahead of Sunrisers Hyderabad, but Punjab was unaware of what Abhishek Sharma was cooking.
Abhishek Sharma came out to chase with his partner Travis Head, and both gave a tremendous start to the team. Even after losing his wicket on a no-ball, he took the opportunity well and went on to smash a half-century in just 19 balls. But this was surely not the place where the youngster was about to stop, as he went on to complete his century in just 40 balls, and at a stage where the target was massive in front of the team. He further went down to bash the bowlers of Punjab Kings, before losing his wicket to Arshdeep Singh, as he scored 141 runs in 55 balls. As SRH secured a dominant win in this game, Abhishek Sharma also received the POTM award.
For RCB’s final league stage but also the most important match, the team went against Lucknow SuperGiants at the Ekana Stadium. A win could help them to finish in the top two, while a loss could have pushed them to the Eliminator stage. Being announced as the interim captain for the team, Jitesh Sharma led the side as Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the toss and decided to field at this ground. Unfortunately, the bowlers were not able to give their best, as the LSG ended with a score of 227 for the loss of 3 wickets, and Rishabh Pant ended up scoring a century.
With Jitesh Sharma receiving too much criticism in the first innings, he played a UNO reverse in the second innings, becoming the star of RCB. The team surely had a great start but lost wickets in quick succession, putting themselves in more trouble when Virat Kohli got out in the 12th over after scoring 54 runs. But Jitesh Sharma, being the captain, took the command into his own hands. When the 17th over started, Digvesh Rathi took his wicket, followed by a sharp catch, but it was a no-ball, and Jitesh took a sigh of relief, standing at 49. In the 18th over bowled by O’Rourke, he scored 20 runs, with the win almost in their hands. Finishing the match in the 19th over, he became the hero of RCB, scoring 85 runs in 33 balls.
Sai Sudharsan has marked his spot as the best batsman of the IPL 2025 season, winning the Orange Cap with the most runs. Although there are several innings played by Sudharsan that can be included in this list, his best came against the Delhi Capitals. Gujarat Titans went against Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, and the team decided to bowl first in this game. Delhi Capitals surely had a good start with the bat, as a century by KL Rahul helped the team to reach the score of 199 runs for the loss of 3 wickets in 20 overs.
Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan came out to chase this mammoth target, and the rest remains history. Sai Sudharsan played consistently with his risk-free approach, which helped him to first reach his half-century in just 30 balls. Later, he went on to accelerate his innings a bit, and scored his first century this season in just 56 balls. He even helped Captain Gill to finish the game, as Gujarat Titans won by 10 wickets. Sudharsan remained not out, scoring 108 runs in 61 balls, and was also given the POTM award.
Not all the best knocks this season were delivered by the top-order batsmen; some of them were also done by the finishers, such as Ashutosh Sharma. Playing his first match for Delhi Capitals this season, Ashutosh Sharma showed why he is regarded as one of the best finishers in the IPL. The team went against Lucknow SuperGiants, and winning the toss, Delhi Capitals decided to field first in this game. But the decision didn’t go in Axar Patel’s favour, as LSG smashed 209 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in 20 overs.
Delhi Capitals surely didn’t have a good start to the chase, losing half their side at the score of 65. Coming down at number 7, Ashutosh Sharma was the last hope for the team if they had to chase down the target. Fortunately, he didn’t let the team and supporters down, as he took the right opportunities to score runs. Once he stood at the score of 20 runs off 20 balls, but within the next two overs, he went to 48 runs off 27 balls. Later, he completed his half-century in 28 balls, and scored two more boundaries in the 19th over, making the match even closer. Finally, he finished the match with a six, helping Delhi to start the campaign with a 1 wicket win.
These were some of the most iconic knocks played by the batsmen in IPL 2025, which strongly changed the game for their team. The list is not limited only to the players discussed here, as there are a number of knocks that will be remembered by the fans. Whether it is Krunal Pandya’s half-century against Delhi Capitals or Priyansh Arya’s maiden IPL century, the number of iconic knocks witnessed by the fans remains high.