Playing their first IPL, Gujarat Lions came within one avoided masterclass of making it to the IPL final, but were left doffing their hats to AB de Villiers first in Bangalore and David Warner in Delhi on Friday

With Sunrisers Hyderabad successfully defending 162 and only an AB de Villiers special preventing Gujarat Lions from defending 158, the playoffs have bucked the early-season pattern of near-invincible chasing teams

Despite not always picking Kuldeep Yadav, Yuvraj Singh brought out his experience to get on top of the wristspinner, setting the tone for Sunrisers Hyderabad's win in the Eliminator

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mustafizur Rahman and Barinder Sran coped admirably without their injured bowling captain and defended 162 to keep Sunrisers Hyderabad on course for a place in the IPL final

They have done the job together for Delhi, but have almost always competed for one opener's slot in the Indian team. Now, in the eliminator, both players will come face-to-face, and only one of them will be left standing

With the season on the line, Kolkata Knight Riders chose Kuldeep Yadav over Piyush Chawla, and the 21-year old proved to be a trump card

Mohit's poor execution may have cost Kings XI the game, but to say that he did so without any reason wouldn't be giving him credit for his otherwise pin-point execution all season

In a season where spinners are fighting for survival, Amit Mishra has adapted with his variety. On Thursday night, he unfurled a cross-seam ball bowled like a medium-pacer to topple Sunrisers Hyderabad

AB de Villiers managed to convert yorkers into sixes late for RCB while Marcus Stoinis and Farhaan Behardien could only manage singles off full tosses in the waning stages of the Kings XI chase

With Mohit Sharma confounding batsmen with two kinds of slower balls and Sandeep Sharma firing in yorkers from around the wicket, Kings XI Punjab managed to defend 54 off the last six overs against a power-packed Delhi Daredevils line-up

The New Zealand fast bowler's road to international cricket was paved with obstacles. In overcoming them he developed a taste for performing in challenging conditions

With Zaheer Khan out injured, Daredevils stand-in captain JP Duminy's determination to stick to pre-set bowling plans proved costly in a home loss to the Supergiants

In a season where top orders have dominated the run charts, here are four middle-order batsmen who have made a difference too

Who could come in for the injured Steven Smith, Mitchell Marsh and Kevin Pietersen? Here are some options for the beleaguered Pune franchise

Flighting the ball when other spinners may have darted it in, Amit Mishra lost and then won the match for Delhi Daredevils, with a little help from his adhesive fingers

Batsmen are increasingly showing such assuredness while chasing in this IPL, it has almost made the game predictable

The slow turning tracks in Mohali have left David Miller, Glenn Maxwell and the rest of the Kings XI Punjab lineup looking like they are playing away matches at home

There has been a clear shift this IPL season. The match-defining contributions are coming from the top of the order, and not through late assaults

John Hastings, the Australia and Kolkata Knight Riders allrounder, has been ruled out of the rest of the IPL season as he has returned home with an ankle injury

Five key factors in Kings XI Punjab's six-wicket win over Rising Pune Supergiants in Mohali