From Mitchell Starc's ball of the season to Punjab Kings' run-chase: Abiding memories of IPL 2024

The 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) season saw some exhilarating cricket being played with mostly bat dominating the ball. While every game generated a lot of buzz, there were some standout achievements and moments during the tournament. TOI takes a look:
1. STARC’S ‘BALL OF THE TOURNAMENT’ TO ABHISHEK SHARMA
Kolkata Knight Riders’ Mitchell Starc did justice to his Rs 24.75 crore price tag with outstanding performances in the knockouts – first in Qualifier 1 and then the final (both against SRH).The ‘ball of the tournament’ came in the first over of the final when Starc breached opener Abhishek Sharma’s defence with a peach of delivery that pitched on middle stump and deviated away at the last moment to clip the off bail. A bewildered Abhishek had no answer to Starc’s brilliance.
2. PUNJAB KINGS CHASING DOWN 262 AGAINST KKR
KKR were at the receiving end of the highest-ever chase in the history of T20 cricket when Punjab Kings cruised over the line with 8 wickets in hand and eight balls to spare. After KKR posted 261/6, a Kolkata win looked certain. But Prabhsimran Singh raced off the blocks, scoring 54 off just 20 balls. Jonny Bairstow then took over
and smashed an unbeaten 108 off 48 balls. Shashank Singh, one of the breakout Indian stars of the tournament, put on the finishing touches with an unbeaten 68 off 28 balls.
3. THRILLING FINAL OVER IN RCB VS CSK GAME
Has to be the most thrilling finish in this IPL when RCB held their nerves in a tense finish against CSK. The two teams knew that only one of them would qualify for the Playoffs at the end of the game. CSK needed 17 off the final over to ensure that despite the defeat they go to the Playoffs ahead of RCB with a better net run-rate. MS Dhoni began with a 110m six off Yash Dayal as the ball went out of the stadium. That proved to be a blessing in disguise as RCB got a drier ball.
The change of ball helped Dayal bowl his slower deliveries into the pitch as CSK fell 10 runs short of what they needed to qualify. The after-match scenes were incredible, with Virat Kohli almost in tears, as RCB pulled off a remarkable comeback in the tournament.
4. ‘TRAVISHEK’ POSTING HIGHEST-EVER POWERPLAY SCORE IN T20s
Sunrisers Hyderabad scripted history as they registered the highest Powerplay team score in T20 cricket during the match against Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The opening duo of Travis Head (84 off 26 balls) and Abhishek Sharma (10-ball 40) – now given the moniker of ‘Travishek’ – smashed the Delhi bowlers to all corners of the ground to score 125 in the first six overs.
5. WILL JACKS'S SENSATIONAL HUNDRED
One of the best performances has to be the sensational hundred Will Jacks scored for RCB against Gujarat Titans. The England allrounder was batting on a run-a-ball 17 and it looked like a struggle for him. But then something flipped and he scored 83 off the next 24 balls to bring up a staggering 41-ball hundred. Jacks took Rashid Khan to the cleaners and hit 10 sixes in those 24 balls of mayhem in Ahmedabad.