The Indian Premier League is back with its 17th edition. As current champions Chennai Super Kings look to defend their trophy, many expect this season to be filled with highly-intense encounters like previous seasons.
As much as these intense clashes generate excitement amongst fans, they also instill anxiety. Matches often go right down the wire, with outcomes being decided with the very last ball.
In such situations, teams who are chasing a score rely on highly-skilled players to see out the game and ensure their side emerges as the victor.
IPL has seen many great finishers showcasing their skills over the years like Mahendra Singh Dhoni, AB de Vlliers, Kieron Pollard, Virat Kohli etc. But who is the best of the lot?
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Who is the best finisher in IPL history?
In certain situations, chasing a score is more favourable than defending it, however, often it is far from a simple task. Even if a team is having smooth innings and breezing past the opponent, a single wicket can turn the tides on them and change the entire dynamic of the match.
For such moments, teams rely on players known as "finishers" to see them across the line. A finisher is a middle-order batsman whose main duty is to bail their side out of tough situations by keeping their calm and blowing the opposition away in the death overs.
Being a finisher is far from an easy position to be in, as often the batsman find themselves in a different situation whenever they enter the field. Over the IPL's history the likes of Dhoni, Kohli, and Jadeja, to name a few, have established themselves as some of the best players to carry their side all the way across the finishing line.
| Rank | Player | No. of not-outs in successful IPL chases |
| 1 | Mahendra Singh Dhoni | 27 |
| 2 | Ravindra Jadeja | 26 |
| 3 | Dinesh Kartik | 22 |
| =3 | Yusuf Pathan | 22 |
| 5 | David Miller | 21 |
| 6 | Dwayne Bravo | 20 |
| 7 | Virat Kohli | 19 |
| =7 | AB de Villiers | 19 |
| =7 | Suresh Raina | 19 |
| 10 | Rohit Sharma | 18 |
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How many runs have Dhoni, Kohli, Jadeja and the best finishers in IPL scored
While some such as Dhoni and Kohli have established themselves not only as ideal finishers but also top run-makers, the likes of Dwayne Bravo and David Miller are great at seeing games out but not the best at scoring runs.
| Player | Matches | Runs |
| Mahendra Singh Dhoni | 250 | 5082 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 226 | 2692 |
| Dinesh Kartik | 242 | 4516 |
| Yusuf Pathan | 174 | 3204 |
| Dwayne Bravo | 161 | 1560 |
| David Miller | 121 | 2714 |
| Virat Kohli | 237 | 7263 |
| AB de Villiers | 184 | 5162 |
| Suresh Raina | 205 | 5528 |
| Rohit Sharma | 243 | 6211 |