IPL: Team of the tournament

Kolkata Knight Riders cruised to their third IPL title with an eight-wicket victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad in Sunday's final and four KKR stars have been selected in our team of the tournament.

Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bengaluru)

Royal Challengers Bengaluru's long wait for a first IPL title continues despite a stunning late-season winning streak that took them into the playoffs.

However, RCB opener Kohli took home the Orange Cap as the season's top batsman, racking up 741 runs in 15 innings – 158 more than his nearest challenger, Chennai captain Ruturaj Gaikwad.

The 35-year-old is still evolving as a T20 batsman and he hit 38 sixes this season, matching his personal-best tally which he achieved in 2016.   

Sunil Narine (Kolkata Knight Riders)

The IPL's MVP in 2012 and 2018, Kolkata veteran Narine was again named player of the tournament after a sensational campaign with bat and ball.

He scored 488 runs at a strike-rate of 181, forging a brilliant opening partnership with England's Phil Salt, and took 17 wickets while conceding just 6.69 runs per over.   

Abhishek Sharma (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

Australia opener Travis Head made a stunning start to the season but finished with three ducks in his last four innings, so his Hyderabad teammate Abhishek gets the nod in our team of the tournament.

Abhishek's strike-rate of 204 runs per 100 balls was the best of the 18 players who passed 400 runs for the season. The 23-year-old also broke Kohli's record for the most sixes hit by an Indian player in an IPL campaign, thumping 42 maximums in 16 innings.  

Riyan Parag (Rajasthan Royals)

Parag, along with fellow middle-order batter Sanju Samson, powered Rajasthan's run to the playoffs and the 22-year-old finished third in the batting chart with 573 runs in 14 innings.

He often had to bail out his team in difficult situations, top-scoring in three of the Royals' last four league fixtures, and his unbeaten 84 off 45 balls in March's win over Delhi was a superb knock.  

Rajat Patidar (Royal Challengers Bengaluru)

Australia's Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green were expected to supply the middle-order fireworks for Bengaluru but they were eclipsed by Patidar's power-hitting.

Having started the year with some scratchy innings in India's Test series against England, Patidar moved through the gears in the IPL, scoring five fifties in his last nine knocks and hitting 33 of the 223 balls he faced for six.  

Rishabh Pant (Delhi Capitals)

After a career-threatening car accident in December 2022, wicketkeeper-batsman Pant made a triumphant return to action for Delhi Capitals.

The Delhi skipper, backed up by overseas youngsters Jake Fraser-McGurk and Tristan Stubbs, played some scintillating innings and 446 runs in 13 games, along with 16 dismissals behind the stumps, earned him a place in India's T20 World Cup squad.

Andre Russell (Kolkata Knight Riders)

KKR's title win owed much to the performances of their legendary West Indian all-rounders Narine and Russell, who topped the champions' bowling averages with 19 wickets.

He claimed 3-19 in Sunday's final, helping to skittle the Sunrisers for 113. In his four previous games he had taken 1-15, 2-34, 2-17 and 2-30 while his unbeaten 64 off 25 balls powered Kolkata to a four-run league win over Hyderabad.    

Pat Cummins (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

Australia's 2023 World Cup-winning captain had to settle for a runners-up medal in the IPL but Cummins deserves great credit for revitalising a Sunrisers side that had finished bottom of the table in 2023.

Hyderabad posted three of the four highest totals of the campaign, including an IPL record 287-3 against RCB, and Cummins contributed 18 wickets and 136 runs, top-scoring with 24 in the final. 

Mitchell Starc (Kolkata Knight Riders)

Kolkata spent big on left-arm paceman Starc in the pre-season player auction and the Australian ace lived up to his price tag at the business end of the tournament.

Injuries hampered Starc in the early weeks of the season but he roared back to form in May, taking 4-33 in a league victory against Mumbai. 

He played decisive roles in both playoff wins over Hyderabad, bowling Head for a duck on his way to figures of 3-34 in Qualifier 1 and producing an unplayable delivery to get rid of the dangerous Abhishek in the first over of Sunday's final.

Varun Chakravarthy (Kolkata Knight Riders)

Kolkata's fast bowlers did most of the damage in the final but spinner Varun Chakravarthy took 1-9 from his two overs to finish with 21 wickets for the season.

Only Punjab Kings paceman Harshal Patel picked up more scalps in the 2024 IPL and Varun's spin alliance with Narine played a crucial role in stifling KKR's opponents in the middle overs.     

Jasprit Bumrah (Mumbai Indians)

Ante-post favourites Mumbai Indians had a miserable season, finishing bottom of the table with 10 defeats in 14 matches despite some stellar performances from fast bowler Bumrah.

The India star missed the 2023 IPL due to a back injury but he made up for lost time this term, claiming 20 wickets at an economy rate of 6.48 runs per over – comfortably the best of any regular paceman in the tournament.

Bumrah's heroics included 5-21 against RCB, when he dismissed the in-form Kohli for three, and 3-18 from 3.5 overs against champions Kolkata and India fans should be excited about his form going into next month's T20 World Cup.