The sixteenth edition of the cash-rich Indian Premier League came to a close recently. As many as 10 teams battled it out amongst themselves to qualify for the playoffs. The likes of Gujarat Titans, Chennai Super Kings, Lucknow Super Giants and Mumbai Indians cracked the code and made it to the next level.

Kevin PietersenLater on, the competition got a little more intense and tougher. Mumbai Indians defeated Lucknow Super Giants in the Eliminator. Chennai Super Kings made it to the 10th IPL final by beating Gujarat Titans in the first qualifier. On the other hand, Rohit Sharma and Co were outsmarted by Gujarat Titans in 2nd qualifier.

As it turned out, Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans locked horns with each other in the all-important final at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. MS Dhoni and Co got the better of Hardik Pandya-led Gujarat Titans in the final by five wickets (DLS method) and went on to claim the fifth IPL trophy. 

In these two months of a power-packed IPL journey, several players went on to make a name for themselves by letting their performances do the talking. Yashasvi Jaiswal won the Emerging Player of the Season award for his stupendous batting display throughout the tournament. 

On the other hand, Shubman Gill finished the IPL 2023 season as the leading run-scorer with 890 runs and deservedly won the Orange Cap whereas Mohammed Shami won the Purple Cap this season as he ended up taking 28 wickets. Faf du Plessis ended up as the second-leading run-scorer with 730 runs.

He also hit the most sixes (36) in IPL 2023 whereas Mohit Sharma and Rashid Khan took 27 wickets apiece. Meanwhile, former England cricketer, Kevin Pietersen who served as a commentator in the IPL picked his team of the IPL 2023 tournament. 

Kevin Pietersen picks his team of IPL 2023

1. Faf Du Plessis. 2. Shubman Gill. 3. Virat Kohli. 4. Suryakumar Yadav. 5. Heinrich Klaasen. 6. Rinku Singh. 7. Rashid Khan. 8. Axar Patel. 9. Mohammad Shami. 10. Mohammad Siraj. 11. Matheesha Pathirana.