Top five lowest total defended in the history of Indian T20 league
Royal Challengers Bangalore (Image Credit :BCCI/Twitter)
T20 format is generally known to run-fest with batters smashing the bowlers all over the park. There have been instances where bowling units have felt helpless in the field. There have been occasions where teams have chased down the target of in excess of 200 runs. On the other hand, there have been instances where teams have defended the totals which seemed impossible.
In this listicle, we will discuss the top five lowest totals defended in the history of the cash-rich league.
The top five lowest totals defended
- Chennai vs Punjab (2009)
In the 54th match of the season two, Chennai won the toss and elected to bat first in Durban. Openers George Bailey (15) and Parthiv Patel 32) provided a great start with 40 runs on the board in just 4.5 overs. However, losing wickets in the middle overs meant they could only muster 116/9. For Punjab, Irfan Pathan and Sreesanth took two wickets each while Ramesh Powar, Wilkin Mota, and Piyush Chawla took one each.
In reply, Punjab never got going and was restricted to 92/8 with only Luke Pomersbach (26) and Irfan Pathan (14) reaching the double figures. Muttiah Muralitharan bowled one of the most miserly spells as he conceded only eight runs in four overs and struck twice.
2. Mumbai vs Punjab (2009)
In the 20th match of the season, Punjab won the toss and elected to bat first at same venue. Batting first, the Yuvraj Singh-led side could only muster 119/8 with Kumar Sangakara scoring 45 not out. For Mumbai, Lasith Malinga took two wickets while Zaheer Khan, JP Duminy, Harbhajan Singh, Dwayne Bravo, and Sanath Jayasuriya took one each.
In reply, the Sachin Tendulkar-led team fell short by three runs despite the half-century from JP Duminy. Irfan Pathan and Yusuf Abdullah took two while Vikranjit Malik, Piyush Chawla, and Ramesh Powar took one wicket each.
