Three wickets, 56 match-winning runs, and one unforgettable night — how Yusuf Pathan lit up the first IPL Final with a knock ESPNcricinfo still ranks as the greatest of them all
What makes a cricket match unforgettable? Is it a last-ball finish? A blinder in the field? Or one man standing tall when everything is on the line?
For the Rajasthan Royals, on a balmy June night in 2008, it was Yusuf Pathan — the big-hitting, stump-to-stump magician — who carried them across the finish line and into the history books. It wasn't just a good game; it was, as the media-giant ESPNcricinfo would later declare, the greatest performance in IPL history.
Let's rewind the tape, shall we?
Before he became a hero, Pathan was Shane Warne's risky bet. Warne saw something explosive in the Baroda lad in a tournament full of stars. He gave him a role: "Take 'em on, Yusuf." Go hard or go home.
Credit: ESPN
Of course, that sort of role came with heartbreaks. After a poor showing in one match, Pathan sat alone, sulking in his hotel room. Warne knocked on his door and offered support.
But what about winning one?
In the final against Chennai Super Kings, Warne and Pathan entered with a plan. CSK had filled their top order with left-handers like Parthiv Patel, Suresh Raina, and Albie Morkel. Warne noticed the opportunity. Pathan bowled flat, quick, stump-to-stump — and CSK's lefties never found their rhythm.
Four overs, 10 dot balls, just 22 runs conceded, 3 wickets taken. The damage was done.
It wasn't flashy. It wasn't showy. But it was brutally effective. Even Makhaya Ntini couldn't match his control that night.
Then came the bat. Chasing 164, the Royals were teetering at 42 for 3. Muralitharan was looming. The pitch wasn't easy. Pathan walked in, not swinging wildly but digging in.
Credit: Indian Express
He scratched his way to 21 off 23 balls with no boundary in sight. It didn't seem like a storm was coming — until it did.
Suddenly, he switched gears. Murali floated one up — Pathan danced down and sent it over the rope. Then again. Then another. He tore into Balaji, continually finding the gaps, picking his moments, and not throwing them away.
Credit: Sportskeeda
By the time he was done, he had scored 56 off 39. Not his flashiest knock, but his most mature one. The Royals won off the last ball by 3 wickets. Sohail Tanvir hit the winning runs, but Yusuf's bat and brain sealed the match much earlier.
In a thrilling performance in the IPL final that night, Pathan showcased exceptional skills by scoring 56 runs off just 39 balls, including three sixes and four boundaries. With the ball, he took 3 wickets for 22 runs in his four overs, achieving an impressive tally of 10 dot balls—only Ntini recorded more in the match.
Notably, he maintained a phenomenal strike rate of 200 against Muralitharan, scoring 24 runs off 12 balls. Furthermore, he became the only player to score over 50 runs and take more than 2 wickets in an IPL final.
That night, there was no quiet corner in the hotel room. No regrets. No knock on the door. Only the cheers of a packed stadium and the knowledge that he had done something special.
And 13 years later, with all the data in the world at our fingertips, we still come back to that one night in Navi Mumbai — when Yusuf Pathan played the greatest IPL knock of them all.
