From Yusuf Pathan’s barnstorming cameo in the very first Indian Premier League final to Krunal Pandya’s ice-cool spell that sealed Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s long-awaited crown in 2025, the Player of the Match (POTM) award has become a time-capsule of the league’s biggest nights. Every season’s finale has produced its own solitary hero, a cricketer who rose above the fireworks and fanfare to tilt the contest. Here is a look at how that honour has unfolded across 18 championship evenings.
RCB finally lift the trophy in 2025
The 2025 finale at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium delivered a watershed moment: RCB shook off 18 seasons of near-misses by toppling Punjab Kings. All-rounder Krunal, drafted for his big-match temperament, justified the call with figures of 4-0-17-2, throttling PBKS in the middle overs and earning a second career POTM in an IPL final—the first man to achieve that repeat feat.
What makes the award special
Unlike season-long prizes decided by aggregating numbers, the POTM for the final rewards a single burst of brilliance under maximum pressure. It encapsulates the essence of T20 cricket: one spell, one innings, or even one over can rewrite the record books and, in many cases, a franchise’s history. For fans, the roll of honour is a memory lane; for players, it is a stamp of legacy.
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Season-by-season list of POTM winners
2008 – Yusuf Pathan (Rajasthan Royals)2009 – Anil Kumble (Royal Challengers Bengaluru)2010 – Suresh Raina (Chennai Super Kings)2011 – Murali Vijay (Chennai Super Kings)2012 – Manvinder Bisla (Kolkata Knight Riders)2013 – Kieron Pollard (Mumbai Indians)2014 – Manish Pandey (Kolkata Knight Riders)2015 – Rohit Sharma (Mumbai Indians)2016 – Ben Cutting (Sunrisers Hyderabad)2017 – Krunal Pandya (Mumbai Indians)2018 – Shane Watson (Chennai Super Kings)2019 – Jasprit Bumrah (Mumbai Indians)2020 – Trent Boult (Mumbai Indians)2021 – Faf du Plessis (Chennai Super Kings)2022 – Hardik Pandya (Gujarat Titans)2023 – Devon Conway (Chennai Super Kings)2024 – Mitchell Starc (Kolkata Knight Riders)2025 – Krunal Pandya (Royal Challengers Bengaluru)
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