Captain Cool – Shows the way

One thing that the second IPL edition has reiterated, is the fact that experience definitely counts even in this shortest version of the game.

Vaibhav Arora

Season 2 of the Indian Premier League may not have seen many high scores or plenty of big shots to electrify the atmosphere, but one thing that this edition has reiterated, is the fact that experience definitely counts even in this shortest version of the game, which until now was deemed to be a format suited just for the young guns. The likes of Anil Kumble and Adam Gilchrist, who have already bid adieu to the game not only led their team into the final, but were also amongst the best players of the tournament. We take a look at the performances of the teams and the role of the captains:Royal Challengers Bangalore Anil Kumble The Royal Challengers went into the tournament with not so pleasant memories from last year’s IPL where they finished at the 7th place, just one above the Deccan Chargers. This year’s competition did not start all that well for the team either as they lost 4 of their first 6 matches under the leadership of Kevin Pietersen. It needed a miracle to turn the team’s fortunes around and when Pietersen had to leave to take part in England’s home series against the West Indies, things looked like heading for the worst. However, it proved to be a blessing in disguise as Anil Kumble, who took over the captaincy, infused a new sense of confidence in the side and marched them straight into the finals. Kumble himself played a crucial role in the Challengers’ success story; scalping 21 wickets from 16 games at an economy rate of less than 6 runs an over. His best figures came against Rajasthan Royals where he claimed 5 wickets for just 5 runs. Kevin Pietersen The sensational England player made his IPL debut as the costliest player in the tournament, but failed to perform either with the bat or as a captain. Of the six games that the Royal Challengers played under him, they managed to win just two. Nothing worked for Pietersen and he ended his 2009 IPL stint with just 93 runs from 6 games at a dismal average of 15.50 Rajasthan Royals Shane Warne The winners of IPL’s inaugural season, Rajasthan Royals, led by the charismatic Shane Warne were hit hard by absenteeism of some of their star performers from last year and it also showed in their performance as they failed to win any of their first four games. But the fighter that he is, Warne came back to reignite the Royals’ hopes of a semi-final berth with a series of victories. However, the team from Rajasthan failed to qualify for the last four and ended the tournament at a disappointing 6th spot. Warne did not look in the best of form as he managed to capture just 14 wickets from 13 games at an economy rate of 7.30 Chennai Super Kings Mahendra Singh Dhoni After his inspiring captaincy that led India to victory in the inaugural T20 championship as well as the Super Kings to the final of 2008 IPL, there was little doubt about the leadership skills of Dhoni. His ability to stay cool under pressure played a major role in the team from Chennai making it to the semi-finals this year. It wasn’t the best of starts for Dhoni’s men in the tourney, but once they got a hang of the conditions in South Africa, there was no looking back. After struggling a bit with the bat in the initial stages, Mahi came back strongly to end the tournament with 332 runs under his belt from 14 games at a healthy average of 41.50Deccan Chargers Adam Gilchrist After their dismal show in the inaugural edition of the IPL, the team from Hyderabad underwent a lot of chopping and changing, which resulted in the axing of VVS Laxman as skipper. Gilchrist, who came in as the new captain had a huge task of reinstating the shattered confidence of his team mates. Before the start, nobody gave any real chance to the Deccan team, but the Hyderabad outfit kept on winning one game after another and the rest, as they say, is history. Defying all odds, Deccan Chargers went on to become 2009 IPL Champions. Gilchrist ended up being one of the most successful batsmen in the competition, amassing 495 runs from 16 games at an average of almost 31. Delhi Daredevils Virender Sehwag Although he failed to fire with the bat, his inspiring leadership made Delhi one of the most successful teams in the 2009 IPL. The Delhi side won 10 of their 14 league games, but lost the all important semi-final match against the Deccan Chargers. Viru, however, failed to live up to expectations, managing to score just 198 runs in 11 games at an average of under 20. Gautam Gambhir Gambhir was made captain in place of the injured Sehwag and led the side to three wins in four games. The southpaw also scored 71 crucial runs against the Kolkata Knight Riders in absence of the explosive Sehwag.
Kings XI Punjab Yuvraj Singh The Punjab team were in the reckoning for a semi-final berth until their last league game but eventually failed to make the cut. Yuvraj Singh led the team well but if it was that one thing for which you would remember the southpaw’s performance in the 2009 IPL, then it would have to be his two hat-tricks more than his batting or captaincy skills. Mumbai Indians Sachin Tendulkar From the batting point of view, the 2009 IPL was a huge success for Sachin Tendulkar where he proved his own statement wrong that T20 was a format for the youngsters. But when talking of captaincy, some of the decisions taken by the master batsman baffled even the experts in deciding to open with Takawale and Bravo against Rajasthan or dropping Sanath Jayasuriya for the game against Delhi. Kolkata Knight Riders Brendon McCullum Kolkata were in turmoil over the captaincy issue even before the tournament started. The sacking of Ganguly and naming of McCullum as the new skipper was being considered as a move that would turn their fortunes around. But the kind of performance the Knight Riders put up would have surprised even critics. Kolkata recorded nine losses in a row but redeemed some of their lost pride by winning two matches towards the end. McCullum failed with the bat, managing to score just 285 runs from 13 matches at an average of 23.75