Slowest Fifties in IPL History

Jean-Paul Duminy has been known as one of the most prolific all-rounders for the South African team. However, he also holds an unwanted record for the slowest half-centuries in the Indian Premier League. During the IPL 2009 season, the matches were played in South Africa, which is known for having tough conditions for the batters.

In the match between Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians at Kingsmead, Punjab won the toss and decided to bat first. They were able to score just 119 runs with the loss of 8 wickets at this challenging pitch, setting a target of 120 for Mumbai Indians. Their top order struggled to perform well, as JP Duminy came out at number four to score 59 runs off 63 balls, taking the team close to the win. Unfortunately, his efforts were not enough to help Mumbai win the match, as he lost his wicket to Abdulla. In the end, Mumbai Indians fell short by just 3 runs, putting his efforts in vain.

Parthiv Patel has been one of the most commendable wicketkeepers for the Indian cricket team. However, his name is also present in the list of slowest half-centuries in the Indian Premier League. This happened during the IPL 2010 season when Parthiv Patel was a part of Chennai Super Kings.

In the 16th match of the tournament, the team went against Kings XI Punjab, and this match was being played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Punjab batted first in this game, and with the advantage to the bowling side, Chennai Super Kings were able to restrict them to score 136 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. Chennai almost had the match in hand before Matthew Hayden lost his wicket at the score of 33 runs off 24 balls. Parthiv Patel decided to play as an anchor in this challenging pitch, as he scored 57 runs off 58 balls with 4 fours and 2 sixes. However, no other batsmen were able to help him in this run chase, as Chennai was able to level the scores. In the Super Over, Punjab was able to win the game.

Shikhar Dhawan, popularly known as Gabbar, has been an aggressive opener in the history of the IPL and even the international matches. His performances have been helpful for the respective teams, with his run scoring ability at its best. But, when it comes to the slowest fifties in the IPL history, Dhawan also stands at the 3rd spot in the list.

In the IPL 2012 season, he played for the Deccan Chargers in a match against the Kolkata Knight Riders. This match was being played at the Barabati Stadium, and the pitch is considered to be a low-scoring one. Deccan Chargers came out to bat, and as the team was losing quick wickets, Dhawan decided to play the role of an anchor. He scored 50 runs off 50 balls but lost his wicket to Rajat Bhatia, as Deccan Chargers were able to score 126 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. Kolkata were able to chase the target easily, with 5 wickets and 6 balls remaining, as Manoj Tiwary and Gautam Gambhir scored 30 runs off 28 balls each.

Murali Vijay is renowned as one of the star batsmen of the Indian cricket team, and he has also been able to dominate the Indian Premier League. But fans would be shocked to know that Murali Vijay is also present in the list of slowest fifties in IPL history.

This happened during the IPL 2013 season when Chennai Super Kings went against Kings XI Punjab in what promised to be a thrilling encounter. This match was being played at Mohali, as Punjab batted first to set a target for CSK to chase. Their batting line-up failed badly, as the team was all out at the score of 138, with David Hussey being the top run scorer with 41 runs off 36 balls. When Chennai came out to chase the target, Michael Hussey was playing totally aggressively, which is why Murali Vijay decided to play the role of anchor. Vijay scored 50 runs off 50 balls and remained not out, as Hussey scored 86 runs off 54 balls to help CSK grab a win.

Gautam Gambhir, the current head coach of the Indian cricket team, is known as one of the most successful batsmen in the Indian team and IPL for his prolific performances when it mattered the most. Focused on the ODI format, Gambhir carried out the same game plan during the 2010 season of the IPL, which made him join the list of slowest half-centuries.

Going against Chennai Super Kings, Gambhir played as a captain for Delhi Daredevils, eager to secure a win. This match was played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, as Chennai came out to bat first. Their batsmen failed to score, as Delhi was able to restrict them to a score of 112 for the loss of 9 wickets. Coming out to chase the target, it seemed easy to Delhi Daredevils. However, they started losing quick wickets, as Virender Sehwag (4), David Warner (0), and Tillakaratne Dilshan (1) went out cheaply. Gautam Gambhir played the role of an anchor for the team, scoring 57 runs off 56 balls, which helped Delhi to chase down the target with 8 balls and 6 wickets remaining. Also, Gambhir was given the Player of the Match award, making him among the few players to have achieved this feat, even with a fifty coming late.

Brendon McCullum, the aggressive striker for the Kiwis has been a threat to the bowlers for a long time. Even in the first IPL match in history, he was able to play with a strike rate of 216.43 against Royal Challengers Bangalore, but he also has his name in the list of slowest half-centuries in the tournament history.

In the IPL 2010 season, Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders went against each other in the 56th match of the tournament at the Eden Gardens. Kolkata were bowling first, and with the dominance of Murali Karthik (2/20) and Shane Bond (2/24), they were able to restrict Mumbai Indians to the score of 133 for the loss of 8 wickets. The target seemed easy to chase as Saurav Ganguly and Brendon McCullum came out to bat and had an opening partnership of 97 runs. With the target being close and many balls remaining, McCullum played slowly with David Hussey at the other end, as he scored 57 runs off 56 balls with 8 fours. Kolkata was able to win this clash by an impressive margin of 9 wickets and 15 balls remaining.

Vijay Shankar has been one of the best batting all-rounders, playing an important role for the Indian cricket team in various international matches, but due to his inconsistent performances, he was dropped from the team in 2019. Although he is known for boosting the team's run rate even being a middle order batsman, Vijay Shankar is also a part of the players with the slowest half centuries in the IPL history.

This happened during the IPL 2020 season, which was being played in UAE. In a match against Rajasthan Royals, Hyderabad were bowling first. They were able to perform well with the help of Jason Holder, who took 3 wickets while conceding 33 runs, as Rajasthan Royals set a target of 155 for Hyderabad. When coming off to bat, David Warner (4) and Jonny Bairstow (10) went off scoring low. In order to save a collapse, Manish Pandey and Vijay Shankar had a match-winning partnership, where Pandey played aggressively, scoring 83 runs off 47 balls. On the other side, Vijay Shankar played the anchor role, scoring 52 runs off 51 balls with 6 fours.

Steven Smith, one of the top class batters and also a part of the Fab 4, has made his name on the cricket field with the help of his impressive performances and classy shots. However, fans will be shocked to know that even such legendary players have made it to the list of unwanted records like the slowest half-centuries in the IPL.

During the IPL 2017 final between Rising Pune Supergiant and Mumbai Indians, the latter batted first and scored just 129 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. Adam Zampa, Dan Christian, and Jaydev Unadkat were able to take two wickets each for RPS, as Krunal Pandya scored 47 off 38 for Mumbai. Coming out to chase the small target, Pune started losing quick wickets, as Rahul Tripathi (3), MS Dhoni (10), and Manoj Tiwary (7) were not able to score. Ajinkya Rahane and Steven Smith had a good partnership until Rahane lost his wicket after scoring 44 off 38. Smith played the role of an anchor but didn't receive the support from the other side, as he scored 51 runs off 50 balls. Rising Pune Supergiant lost the finals by just one run, as Washington Sundar was run out on the last ball.

Riyan Parag, who is among the rising stars for the Indian cricket team, also had a tough time in his starting days in the Indian Premier League. Although he has been able to get some remarkable achievements to his name in the last few years, his name also stands at the 9th spot in the list of slowest half-centuries in the IPL history.

It was during the IPL 2019 season when Rajasthan Royals went against Delhi Capitals at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in Delhi. Rajasthan batted first, but things didn't go well for the team, as they lost quick wickets with Ajinkya Rahane (2), Liam Livingstone (14), Sanju Samson (5), Mahipal Lomror (8), and many more, failing to score. Riyan Parag was the only top scorer for the team as he scored 50 runs off 49 balls to help them reach a total of 115 runs for the loss of 9 wickets. In return, Delhi Capitals was able to chase the target with ease, as Rishabh Pant scored 53 runs off 38 balls to help the team win.

Another remarkable wicketkeeper for the Indian cricket team, Robin Uthappa, stands at the tenth spot when it comes to the slowest half-centuries in the history of the Indian Premier League. Uthappa has achieved several feats in his career, but the record of slowest fifties could be the one he wants to forget.

In the IPL 2010 season, he was a wicket keeper for Pune Warriors India. When the team went against Delhi Daredevils in the 31st match of the tournament, they were batting first. After losing two quick wickets of Jesse Ryder (0) and Sourav Ganguly (1), Manish Pandey and Robin Uthappa have an unbroken 146 runs stand. Pandey scored 80 runs off 56 balls, while Robin Uthappa played the anchor role from the other end. He scored 60 runs off 58 balls with 6 fours. Coming out to chase, Delhi Daredevils were able to do it easily with 4 overs and 8 wickets remaining, as Virender Sehwag scored 87 runs off 48 balls.