Man of the Match awardees in IPL finals

2016 – Ben Cutting (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

Two teams led by two prolific captains made it to the 2016 IPL final. On one side, was Virat Kohli’s RCB, who had laid waste to many a team en route to the final. On the other hand, David Warner’s amazing run with the bat had given the Sunrisers Hyderabad their first crack at an IPL title. Unfortunately for Kohli and his boys, they couldn’t overcome their jinx of choking in the final.

Despite Warner’s 69 in the first innings, it was another Australian who shone for SRH with both bat and ball. A late flurry of boundaries from Ben Cutting meant SRH ended the first innings with 208 on the board, never an easy chase, even for a team as power-packed as RCB.

Cutting followed up his 15-ball 39 to get the crucial breakthrough in RCB’s chase. The perilous opening pair of Gayle and Kohli looked to get to the target without losing a single wicket. However, Cutting removed Chris Gayle just when he was threatening to take the game away from SRH.

He then rattled KL Rahul’s stumps as RCB suddenly saw the game slip away from their hands. Eventually, it was a matter of 8 runs that separated the Sunrisers from the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Ben Cutting bagged the Man of the Match award for his all-round performance.