The Indian Premier League is among the most competitive sporting events. Cricket has undergone a revolution thanks to the Indian Premier League. Cricket was once controlled by bowlers, but in the T20 era, batsmen have routinely crushed bowling units.
Fans have seen IPL big scores since the Impact Player rule was implemented, which were uncommon even in ODI cricket at one point. In IPL games, teams have been frequently reaching the 200-run milestone.
In general, a batter with a strike rate of 150 or above gets the league’s Man of the Match title. In the T20 format, a batter’s effort is deemed inadequate if their strike rate is less than 100. Three such infrequent occasions, though, have occurred in IPL history where a batter won Man of the Match even if his strike rate was 100 or less.
1. Shubman Gill
The record for the lowest strike rate by a specialist hitter to win Man of the Match in the 2025 Indian Premier League has been set by Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill. When he hit 43 runs off 46 balls against the Mumbai Indians on May 6 at the Wankhede Stadium, his strike rate was 93.48.
Gill and Sai Sudharsan batted first. The conditions made it difficult to bat, and MI’s pacers benefited from them. Gill stayed in the middle and supported the 156-run chase after Sudharsan was removed for five runs.
The GT captain lost his wicket for 43 runs from 46 balls after hitting three fours and one six. With a traditional delivery, Jasprit Bumrah cleaned him up. Still, GT went on to win the match on the last ball, and Gill got the award for his knock, three catches, and great captaincy.
2. Hanuma Vihari
Among all Man of the Match winners in the Indian Premier League only SunRisers Hyderabad batsman Hanuma Vihari possesses a strike rate below 100. The strike rate of 96.60 marked a rare Man Of The Match performance for Hanuma Vihari against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2013.
SRH’s team bowled RCB to their total of 130/8 within 20 overs during the clash in Hyderabad. The Sunrisers Hyderabad attempted to get 131 while their batsmen fell one by one. HRH’s number four batter Vihari remained undefeated at 44 runs off 46 balls while fighting dedicatedly throughout the innings.
Vihari had a strike rate of 95.65 in his knock, hitting just two fours. Because of his efforts, SRH was able to draw the match and then win it through Super Over. In that match, he was the only hitter from the SRH to score more than 25 runs.
3. MS Dhoni
Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni earned the Man of the Match recognition for his 33-ball unbeaten 33 against Delhi Daredevils during the inaugural IPL match in 2008. DD posted 187/5 on 20 overs while CSK knocked 188/6 by finishing on the final delivery.
Both Stephen Fleming and Albie Morkel scored 30s with superior strike rate numbers. The decision went to Dhoni because he establilshed the batting order effectively during his number three position. The four boundaries Dhoni smacked put CSK over the finish line to secure victory.
