IPL History: 3 Most Exciting Matches Of IPL 2014

Defending champions Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore will face off each other in the first match of IPL 2021. The tournament kick-starts on April 9, 2021, at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. A total of 8 teams will play a total of 60 matches during IPL 2021. Due to Covid-19 concerns, spectators will not be allowed to enter the stadiums and matches will be played under closed doors.

Back in IPL 2014, Kolkata Knight Riders won their 2^nd IPL trophy. In a nail-biting final, Kolkata Knight Riders defeated Kings XI Punjab while chasing a big target of 200 runs. In IPL 2014, the result of one match between Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders was decided on the basis of boundary counts as the super over also ended in a tie. Likewise, there were more exciting matches played during IPL 2014. Here we talk about the 3 most exciting matches of IPL 2014.

IPL History: 3 Most Exciting Matches Of IPL 2014

Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kolkata Knight Riders (Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE)

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore match in IPL 2014 at Sharjah witnessed a twist of events in the final over. Kolkata Knight Riders batted first in the match and scored 150-7. Jacques Kallis and Chris Lynn played fine knocks of 43 and 45 respectively. While chasing, Royal Challengers Bangalore were even better with the batting.

RCB were 142-4 after the end of 19 overs. They needed 9 runs off the final over with AB de Villiers on the crease. It seemed like an easy win for the RCB but fate had something else in mind. KKR bowler Vinay Kumar bowled a fantastic over. Kumar bowled de Villiers on the 4th ball, taking the match to 6 runs off 2 balls. With 4 needed off the final ball, Morne Morkel could only manage 1 run and Kolkata Knight Riders won the match by 2 runs in the end. RCB lost even after having 5 wickets in their hands.

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Rajasthan Royals (Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi)

There is no denial that matches with super overs are one of the most exciting ones. In IPL 2014, Kolkata Knight Riders vs Rajasthan Royals match at Abu Dhabi was a tied game. With Ajinkya Rahane’s 72 runs, Rajasthan Royals reached 152-5 batting first. Gautam Gambhir played a great knock of 45 runs. Suryakumar Yadav with 31 and Shakib Al Hasan with unbeaten 29 runs made a huge contribution to the chase. KKR needed 3 to win off the last ball but Shakib was able to get 2, taking the match to the super over.

James Faulkner bowled the super over for Rajasthan Royals and he dismissed Sanju Samson on the first ball. Kolkata Knight Riders managed to score 11 runs off the over.  For Rajasthan, Sunil Narine bowled the super over. The match again went to 3 runs off the final ball, and Rajasthan managed only 2 runs. Rajasthan Royals won the match on the boundary count after scoring an equal of 11 runs of the super over.

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Kings XI Punjab (M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru)

Kings XI Punjab vs Kolkata Knight Riders final in IPL 2014 was also a nail-biting thrilling encounter to watch. Kings XI Punjab scored massive 199-4 batting first with Wriddhiman Saha hitting unbeaten 115 and Manan Vohra smashing 67. While it was a tough target to chase, Manish Pandey played a beautiful knock of 94 runs while Yusuf Pathan scored 36. In the last two overs, KKR needed 15 runs off 12 balls but they were 186-6 and had lost most of the batsmen.

Mitchell Johnson bowled a great over and also dismissed Suryakumar Yadav on the 2nd delivery. With bowlers Sunil Narine and Piyush Chawla on the crease, KXIP had a great chance of victory. The match went to 11 runs off 7 balls when Piyush Chawla smashed an unexpected six off Johnson’s final delivery. This changed the situation of the match with KKR needing just 5 runs of the final over. Piyush Chawla again hit a boundary off the 3rd ball of the final over to claim the title for his team. Kolkata Knight Riders lifted their 2nd IPL trophy with the victory by 3 wickets and Piyush Chawla became the star of the match for his two crucial hits.