‘277 was unthinkable at that moment’- Aakash Chopra on how batters dominated IPL last season

The new season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will begin in March, following the Champions Trophy. Despite some incredible knocks and stretches, the hitters dominated the 2024 IPL. Many of the scores were 200 or above. The record for the greatest total in an IPL game was also broken during this season.

Many experts expressed their opinions regarding batters controlling the game, and Aakash Chopra was one of them. He discussed how batters’ aggressive style has fundamentally altered Twenty20 cricket. Chopra thought back to the Mumbai Indians vs. Sunrisers Hyderabad match, where the hitters dominated.

“Only the batsmen dominated the 2024 IPL.

” A brief teaser for the future of this Twenty20 match has been shown to us. Whoever arrives, hits; they’re hitting sixes on sixes. 277—at the time, that was unimaginable. However, the Sunrisers succeeded, posing a formidable obstacle for Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma. It was going to be an uphill battle or a complete thriller. At first, winning didn’t even seem possible, and there was 277 on the line. However, Ishan began from the opposite end when Rohit took his position. The game took an odd turn as they started hitting the ball cleanly. All of a sudden, everything seemed feasible! JioHotstar quoted Chopra.

“Keep going, keep smashing, keep hitting sixes.” Another batter enters and begins to hit after the first one leaves. The assault continues after he falls and is replaced by another. They simply continued. You have to acknowledge that this was becoming a six-hitting match at that point. What’s ironic is that I think the team that hit more sixes lost the game. Hyderabad hit 18 sixes, while Mumbai hit 20. However, Chopra continued, “the team that hit 18 sixes won, and the team that hit 20 sixes lost.”

When you play with no fear, the possibilities are endless: Aakash Chopra

Chopra also considered how the batters’ strategy had altered, as they became more daring in their batting during the competition. He continued by explaining how the game’s tempo has abruptly changed and stating that in the World Cup held in India, scores like this were even uncommon.

Such huge scores in one-day cricket were uncommon six months ago. In India, we even held a World Cup, although the action wasn’t played at this speed. All at once, batters have come to recognise their enormous potential. Teams can take a more flexible approach, the impact player rule is in effect, and the pitches are good. The actual change, though, has taken place in the mind. While the skill set remains the same, the mindset has evolved. This mentality change has fundamentally altered how batters play the game. Chopra stated that “the sky is truly the limit when you play with a fearless attitude.”