Introduction
There were some very iconic performances in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2008 season. The IPL saw many great innings during its inaugural season. Eight teams participated in the matches, with Rajasthan Royals securing the first title against CSK. This first season of the IPL proved to be so successful that the excitement about the IPL started increasing among cricket fans all over the world.
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| Man of the Series IPL 2008 |
In the IPL tournaments, some awards are given to appreciate the players who perform their best. The most prestigious award out of which is the Man of the Series award. This award is given to those players who have given their full contribution in bowling, batting, catching, players who are all-rounders and who give regular impactful performances are given this award. The Man of the Series award of IPL 2008 was given to Shane Watson. He is an Australian cricketer, who was a part of the Rajasthan Royals team in the IPL 2008 season. He scored a total of 472 runs and took 17 wickets in the entire season.
Let's delve into the details of Shane Watson, who emerged as the man of the series in the 2008 IPL.
Who is Shane Watson?
One of the best players in the Australian cricket team is Shane Watson. In the first season of IPL 2008, Shane Watson was taken by Rajasthan Royals, which proved to be a good decision for RR. Shane Watson is an all-rounder player who is proficient at both batting and bowling and is also very skilled in fielding.
Shane Watson had made many records in international cricket before participating in IPL 2008. He achieved a strike rate of 146.58 in the T20 format and 151.76 in the IPL.
Joining the Rajasthan Royals allowed Shane Watson to fully utilize his skills, resulting in a remarkable performance in the first season of the IPL 2008 that earned him the first man of the series award.
The first captain of RR in IPL 2008 was Shane Warne, under whom Watson got the opportunity to show his skills. Watson's ability to change his batting and bowling pattern in various situations makes him better than other players this season. Watson being a part of the RR team is a matter of pride for the team.
Performance Highlights in IPL 2008
Shane Watson performed brilliantly in IPL 2008. As a result, RR emerged victorious in numerous matches. And this team also won the 2008 IPL season, in which Shane Watson was one of the players with the maximum score. If we talk about his scores in all the matches, then his best score was in the match against Delhi Daredevils, in which he scored 74 runs in just 40 balls at a high strike rate of 185. In the same match, Watson also took 1 wicket in 4 overs.
If we talk about some of the best performances, then in the table given below, stats are given about all those matches in which Watson has performed brilliantly.
Best performances of Shane Watson in the IPL 2008 season
Shane Watson showcased his ability throughout the IPL 2008 season by displaying good runs, good bowling, and good fielding. He scored 472 runs in total in 15 matches, in which his strike rate was 151.76, which was the highest strike rate of this season. Along with batting, he also took 17 wickets in 15 matches. This excellent work by Watson helped the Rajasthan Royals win their first IPL trophy in 2008.
Better players make a better team, and RR had many players like Shane Watson, due to whose contribution they were able to win this title. And the best player of the winning team, i.e., the man of the series IPL 2008 award, was given to Shane Watson.
Shane Watson's Score in IPL 2008
The significance of Watson's achievement
Shane Watson winning the Man of the Series award in IPL 2008 was a big deal. Because this was the first season of IPL, Shane Watson proved to be the first player to receive this award. The history of the IPL will forever bear Shane Watson's name in golden letters.
Shane Watson was taken as a low-budget player in IPL 2008. The team wanted to focus more on low-budget players and give them maximum opportunities. Shane Watson was bought for 50 lakh rupees in the IPL 2008 auction, but he performed better than other highest-paid players on the team. Like Shane Watson, other players in the team, like Yusuf Pathan and Sohail Tanvir, performed best, due to which the Rajasthan Royals were able to win the IPL 2008 title.
Shane Watson played the role of a middle-order batsman in the team in which he scored well. Shane is also a right-arm medium-fast bowler, due to which he took wickets of the best players of the opponent team in the matches, due to which the enthusiasm in RR started increasing.
Overall Shane Watson may have been a low-cost buy, but due to his good performance, he proved to be the most important player for the team.
Comparison with Other Players in IPL 2008
Shane Watson wasn't the only player who performed well. Like Yusuf Pathan from RR, he played a good innings in which he scored 435 runs at a strike rate of 179.01 and also took 8 wickets.
Another player of Rajasthan Royals, Sohail Tanvir, has also recorded his good performance in 11 matches. He performed best in terms of bowling and took 22 wickets, for which he won the purple cap.
If we talk about a player from another team, Shaun Marsh from Kings XI Punjab performed well and scored 616 runs at a batting strike rate of 139.68. He was also a successful batsman in IPL 2008 who won the orange cap.
MS Dhoni, who plays for the Chennai Super Kings, is also compared to Watson. He played 16 matches in which he scored 414 runs at a strike rate of 133.54. His captaincy enabled CSK to secure a spot in the final. This comparison list also includes Andrew Symonds. As an experienced player, he was bought by Deccan Chargers for Rs. 5.4 crore. However, Andrew's performance fell short of expectations. He scored only 161 runs; therefore, he does not come in the list of Man of the Series in IPL 2008.
Overall, all these players deserved Man of the Series in IPL 2008, but Shane Watson's all-rounder performance gave him this award.
Read Also: Who Hit Most Sixes in IPL 2017?
Legacy of the Man of the Series Award
Following Shane Watson's inaugural Man of the Series award in the IPL 2008, the IPL began presenting this award annually to the top all-rounders. The following players received the Man of the Series award for the next five years after IPL 2008.
Man of the Series Award in IPL 2009-2014
Conclusion
Shane Watson's contribution to Rajasthan Royals was invaluable, and due to his all-rounder role, he was awarded the man of the series award in IPL 2008. In 2013, Shane Watson won the award for the man of the series in IPL 2013. His excellent batting and bowling performance transformed him from a low-buy player to one of the most valuable players. Shane Watson's contribution to Rajasthan Royals winning the IPL 2008 title was immense. Shane Watson's performance made him a favorite not only of Rajasthan Royals but also of cricket fans all over the world. His unpredictable and explosive performance earned him the man of the series award. His victory represents the ability of a single player to show how promising and hard-working players like Watson can be the reason for the success of the entire team.
Call to Action
Did you watch the IPL 2008 season? So how did you like Shane Watson's performance? Do you believe that all-rounders play the most important role in the match? Do not forget to tell us in the comments.
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FAQs on the Man of the Series Award in IPL 2008.
1) Who won the Man of the Series award in IPL 2008?
The first season of IPL was in 2008, in which the winning team was the Rajasthan Royals team, whose all-rounder player Shane Watson won the Man of the Series award in IPL 2008.
2) Why did Shane Watson win the Man of the Series award in IPL 2008?
Shane Watson's performance was the main reason he won the Man of the Series award in the IPL 2008. Because he played the role of an all-round player throughout the match. Watson participated in 15 matches, amassing a total of 472 runs and securing 17 wickets. Rajasthan Royals won the IPL 2008 season, and the credit for this goes to Shane Watson somewhere. Watson's bowling effectively removed players who were among the top players on the opposing team. Shane Watson's outstanding performance earned him the title of Man of the Series.
3) How many runs and wickets did Shane Watson contribute in IPL 2008?
Shane Watson scored 472 runs at a strike rate of 151.76, which was the highest for Rajasthan Royals. He also took 17 crucial wickets at an economy rate of 7.07.
4) Which team did Shane Watson represent in IPL 2008?
Shane Watson was a member of the Rajasthan Royals team. He was bought as a low-buy player in an auction for just Rs 50 lakhs.
5) Was Shane Watson the top scorer or highest wicket-taker in IPL 2008?
No! It is not so. Shane Watson was one of the highest scorers only from the RR team. But if we consider all the teams overall in IPL 2008, then the highest scorer was Shaun Marsh (KXIP), who scored 616 runs. The highest wicket-taker was Sohail Tanvir (RR). But the only player who had good runs and wickets with a good strike rate was Shane Watson, due to which he was awarded man of the series IPL 2008.
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