IPL 2020 - Top 5 thrilling moments so far

The 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has seen some spectacular moments so far. From never wrecking finishes to gravity defining fielding from the players, IPL 2020 in its starting few weeks has seen it all.

The tournament has already registered two entertaining Super Over finishes and a bunch of game-changing moments from individuals which has ignited IPL 2020 in many ways.

So, we look at the top five moments so far in the tournament in UAE:

1. Flying Nicholas Pooran

In what is arguably the best fielding effort in the IPL 2020 so far, which even drew praise from greats like Jonty Rhodes and Sachin Tendulkar, KXIP's Nicholas Pooran pulled off one of the most incredible pieces of fielding in the history of the sport.

Samson, who was batting on 26 off 14 balls, took on Ashwin and firmly struck Ashwin's delivery to what seemed like a six! But, guarding the fence was the Windies cricketer who turned into Superman to save a certain 6. Pooran floated in the air and took the catch and managed to throw the ball into the field before landing on the ground over the boundary line to save valuable four runs for his side as Smith and Samson had already managed to take a double.

2. Thumping Rahul Tewatia 

Rajasthan Royals (RR) had registered an emphatic 4-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in one of the most entertaining matches of the Indian Premier League (IPL) back on September 27. The Rajasthan side managed to score 82 runs off the last four overs as they completed the highest ever successful run-chase in the IPL history.  In chase of a total of 224 runs, RR got off to an awful start as they lost Jos Buttler for just 4 runs. However, skipper Steven Smith and Sanju Samson then formed a formidable partnership and propelled Rajasthan towards the target score.

With the momentum shifting towards Rajasthan, KXIP skipper called in Mohammad Shami and he managed to pay KL's trust by dismissing the very dangerous Sanju Samson for 85 (42). However, Tewatia did not give up and managed to change the face of the match in the 17th over the match where he absolutely obliterated Sheldon Cottrell with some unbelievable power hitting.

The RR allrounder started to rain hell on Cottrell from the very first ball of the over and smashed the Windies pacer for 5 sixes in 6 balls to put RR back into the game.

3. No 'Mankad' R Ashwin

Ravichandran Ashwin raised a few eyebrows when he did not ‘Mankad’ Aaron Finch in the game between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals in IPL 2020 at the Dubai International Cricket stadium. Finch had wandered out of his crease before  R Ashwin released the ball and instead of mankading him, he warned him and had a wry smile.

However, the reaction of Ricky Ponting, the head coach of the Delhi Capitals team, has gone viral. Following the incident, Ricky Ponting was seen having a big smile on his face. Before the start of IPL 2020, Ricky Ponting had said that he would not allow Ashwin to ‘Mankad’ in the tournament.​

4. Supr Over action in Dubai

Delhi Capitals (DC) had defeated Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) after a dramatic super-over clash in the second match of IPL 2020. Batting first, DC hoisted a total of 157/8 after 20 overs on the back of Marcus Stoinis' propelling innings of 53 runs off 21 balls. On the chase, KXIP lost their skipper KL Rahul early but it was thanks to opener Mayank Agarwal's heroic innings of 89 runs off 60 balls that boosted KXIP to tie up the score after an intense final over of the match.

In the super over, Kagiso Rabada once again showcased his bowling prowess as he picked up Rahul and Pooran's wickets with two beauty deliveries to finish KXIP at 2/2. With a target score of three to win the match from six balls, DC sent Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer to rap things up, who finished it off in a blast without losing any wickets in the end.

5. KXIP lose by millimeters

If one has to describe Kings XI Punjab's (KXIP) 2 run loss against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) it will be by millimeters. Where a six could get the game into Super Over, the four got KKR the two-run win at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

In chase of a target score of 165, KXIP skipper KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal put on 115 runs partnership. The duo made sure to go smashing as the side needed a win desperately. However, Mayank departed after scoring 56, while Rahul was bowled for 74. But their departure changed the whole momentum of the game. With 20 needed off the final 2, Prasidh Krishna displayed his death bowling skills and bowled a masterful penultimate over which yielded 6 runs and plucked out both the aforementioned batters.

The match saw a thrilling end as Glenn Maxwell struck the final ball of the innings high and wide. While KXIP needed six to take the game into Super Over, camera angles showed that the ball landed just inside the boundary hoardings.