The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a fast-paced game where batters are required to attack from the start and play explosively. However, there are also moments when the game calls for a steady and calm innings. It’s during these occasions that batters have scored runs at a strike rate below 100, which is very unusual in the IPL format. Let’s take a look at these incidents when batters scored the slowest fifties in IPL history.
Slowest fifties in IPL
| Player | Balls Faced | Team |
| JP Duminy | 59 | MI |
| Parthiv Patel | 57 | CSK |
| Brendon McCullum | 52 | KKR |
| Robin Uthappa | 52 | Pune Warriors |
| Gautam Gambhir | 51 | DD |
JP Duminy
In a match between Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab (Punjab Kings). Punjab, batting first, could only give a target of 119/8. However, Punjab still reached a winning position despite a low target as MI made 116/7 in their chase. MI’s only surviving player was JP Duminy, who scored 59 off 63 balls and made a fifty off 55 balls.
Parthiv Patel
In the 2010 IPL encounter between Chennai Super Kings and Kings XI Punjab, Parthiv Patel produced a slow half-century. In a quiet performance, Parthiv hit two sixes and four fours as CSK’s opening batsman. After hitting 57 off 58 deliveries, he was removed in the 18th over, with a strike rate of just 98. After that, CSK completed their 20 overs with a score of 136/7.
Brendon McCullum
Known for his aggressive batting style, Brendon McCullum struck an undefeated 158 off 73 balls in the opening match of the inaugural season. However, he also registered one of the slowest half-centuries in the IPL. During the 2010 IPL, McCullum’s slowest fifty came off 52 balls while he was a player for KKR.
Robin Uthappa
Robin Uthappa achieved one of the joint-third slowest half-centuries in IPL history during the 2012 season while playing for Pune Warriors against Delhi Daredevils. He took 52 balls to reach his fifty and ended with an unbeaten 60 from 58 deliveries.
Gautam Gambhir
In a winning cause, Gambhir struck a 51-ball IPL fifty against CSK in the 2010 IPL in Chennai. The Delhi Daredevils (now the Delhi Capitals) won the match by six wickets after he hit an undefeated 57 off 56. They had to chase 113 runs.
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