5 memorable moments in IPL history

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is entering its eighth edition on Wednesday with defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders taking on the Mumbai Indians in the opening encounter. Over the years, the tournament has provided fans with some memorable moments that are still etched in people's minds.Here are 5 of the most memorable moments in IPL history:

#5 Adam Gilchrist\'s moment with the ball (2013)

Set to chase 184 in their game against the Kings XI Punjab at Dharamshala, the Mumbai Indians had all but lost the match and needed an improbable 51 runs in the final over. Adam Gilchrist, playing his final IPL game, gave away his wicket-keeping gloves to Praveen Kumar and took the ball in his hand.

On the first ball he bowled, Harbhajan Singh looked to smash the Australian great over the fence. But unfortunately for the Indian off-spinner, he just couldn't find any timing and was caught by Gurkeerat Singh on the long-on fence.

The wicket-keeper was expectedly delighted and performed a modified version of the Gangnam style dance before running across the field.

Here’s a video of that wicket:

#4 Sohail takes 6 (2008)

Rajasthan Royals took on Chennai Super Kings at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium in Jaipur in the inaugural edition of the IPL. MS Dhoni won the toss and elected to bat first, but that decision proved to be a disastrous one as Pakistan’s Sohail Tanvir provided his side with not one, but two early breakthroughs, removing the opening pair of Parthiv Patel and Stephen Fleming for ducks.

He later came on to wreak havoc in the latter part of the innings and eventually finished with figures of 6 for 14 in 4 overs that helped in dismissing the Super Kings for 109 in 19 overs. This spell still stands as the best bowling figures in the history of the tournament.

Here’s a video of that performance:

#3 AB de Villiers takes Dale Steyn to the cleaners (2014)

Set to chase 156 in 20 overs against the SunRisers Hyderabad, the Royal Challengers Bangalore found themselves in a spot of bother at 38 for 3 when AB de Villiers walked in to join Rilee Rossouw. That soon became 95 for 5 when Yuvraj Singh fell for 14 and it was now up to the right-hander to rally the lower order around him and pull off a win for his side.

After playing steadily for a while, the equation boiled down to them needing 28 off 2 overs. Dale Steyn ran in to bowl the 19th over of the innings, and what followed was a thrilling exhibition of strokeplay as de Villiers smashed his South African teammate for 3 sixes and boundary to all but seal a win for his side.

The assault had such an impact on Steyn that he himself appreciated the pyrotechnics from his countryman.

Here’s a video of that incredible over:

#2 Chris Gayle goes berserk at the Chinnaswamy (2013)

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) took on the Pune Warriors at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Opting to bat first, Chris Gayle absolutely launched into the Pune attack, smashing them to all corners of the ground.

He reached his half-century off a mere 17 balls, courtesy a six from Mitchell Marsh’s bowling and then continued his assault on the bowlers, getting through his next 50 in just 13 deliveries to record the fastest ever hundred in the history of cricket.

The boundaries and sixes continued to flow out of Gayle's bat even after that as he surpassed the previous highest individual score in T20 cricket of 158 that belonged to Brendan McCullum. Gayle eventually finished on 175 not out off 66 balls, with 13 fours and 17 sixes.

RCB finished on 263 for 5 at the end of their 20 overs and won the game by 130 runs as the Warriors could muster only 133 runs.

Here are highlights from that game:

#1 Yuvraj Singh\'s last ball run out (2008)

The Mumbai Indians were playing the Kings XI Punjab at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Electing to field first, the Sachin Tendulkar-led side conceded 189 runs in 20 overs. In reply, thanks to a 65 from the captain, they found themselves at 171 for 7 at the end of 19 overs, needing 19 in 6 balls.

The first two deliveries in the over went for a six and a four, which meant that the home team required 9 in 4 balls. Punjab pulled it back in the next delivery, removing Siddarth Chitnis for 15. Two balls later, they lost Ashish Nehra too as the equation boiled down to 4 runs off 2 balls.

Off the fifth ball, they managed to run a brace and with 2 needed off 1, Vikrant Yeligati, played a ball straight to the cover fielder and started off for a run. But Punjab skipper Yuvraj Singh collected the ball, rushed towards the stumps, and dislodged them with a dive. This moment was reminiscent of Jonty Rhodes’s effort in the 1992 World Cup. That piece of brilliance meant that Punjab escaped with a thrilling one-run win.

Here's a video of that thrilling finish: