Xtra Time Web Desk : On April 18, 2008, a global phenomenon in the form of the Indian Premier League arrived and changed T20 and franchise cricket around the world forever.
The first-ever match was played in the IPL, a battle between Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The very first match of IPL probably was the best advertisement a new competition could get, as the then New Zealand youngster Brendon McCullum featuring in a line-up studded with players such as Sourav Ganguly, Ricky Ponting, David Hussey and Mohammad Hafeez took the IPL by a storm and single-handedly blew away the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
McCullum played an unbeaten knock of 158 runs off just 73 balls smashing 10 fours and 13 sixes as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) won the first game by a whopping 140 runs. That game not just marked the start of a T20 extravaganza but the rivalry that saw some iconic games in the years to come.
With this knock, KKR posted a total score of 222/3 in the allotted twenty overs. KKR then had no difficulty in defending the score as the side bundled out RCB for just 82 runs, winning the match by 140 runs.
The Indian Premier League, which began on April 18, 2008, became a global phenomenon that forever transformed T20 and franchise cricket around the world.
The IPL began with a match between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Royal Challengers Bangalore at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium. The first match of the IPL was probably the best advertisement a new competition could get, as then-New Zealand youngster Brendon McCullum, who was part of a line-up that included Sourav Ganguly, Ricky Ponting, David Hussey, and Mohammad Hafeez, single-handedly blew away the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) won the first game by 140 runs thanks to McCullum’s unbeaten 158 runs off just 73 balls, which included 10 fours and 13 sixes. That game not only kicked off a T20 bonanza, but also a rivalry that would produce some memorable matches in the years to come.
In the allocated twenty overs, KKR reached a total score of 222/3 thanks to this hit. KKR then had no trouble defending the score, bowling RCB out for just 82 runs and winning the game by 140 runs.