Purple reign of Kolkata Knight Riders

In a wonderful display of total team effort, Gautam Gambhir's shining Knights had an astounding late run to win a second title in three years. TOI draws up a report card of the men who made it possible.
Gautam Gambhir: 9/10 Full marks for his attacking captaincy and making his men believe in their own ability. By choosing to play with five frontline bowlers in every match, he showed that it was possible to defend low scores regularly if you have quality bowlers.Credit is also due to the skipper for turning around his own batting form with a string of useful contributions. M: 16, W-11, R: 335, HS 65; S/R: 114.
Robin Uthappa: 9/10 He may have missed out in the final, but had done enough damage with the bat in earlier matches to deserve the Orange Cap. With 660 runs in his kitty, he was un doubtedly KKR's batting star. M: 16, R: 660, HS 87*; S/R: 137.
Manish Pandey: 7/10 No praise can be too high for the calm and collected manner in which he anchored KKR's chase in the final. Took calculated risks to keep up with the asking rate. How ever, by throwing away his wicket, he be trayed his temperament. M: 16, R: 401, HS: 94; S/R: 117.
Shakib Al Hasan: 7/10 Made crucial contributions with the bat and ball right through KKR's campaign. Was easily KKR's best bowler in the final. M: 13, R: 227, HS 60; S/R: 149; Ov: 50; W: 11; E/R: 6.68.
Jacques Kallis: 4/10 The veteran all-rounder struggled with his game at the start of the tournament. With Uthappa firing at the top, the South African lost his place in the playing XI. M: 8, R: 151, HS 72; S/R: 117; Ov: 22; W: 4; E/R: 8.45.
Surya Yadav: 5/10 The Mumbai youngster looked the part and impressed with his ability to strike the ball cleanly. Needs to mature as a batsman. M: 16, R: 164, HS 34; S/R: 140.
Ryan Doeschate: 5/10 Did reasonably well in the limited oppor tunities he got. His medium pace was, how ever, not up to the scratch. M: 10, R: 52, HS 25*; S/R: 157; Ov: 5; Wkt: 1; E/R: 7.00.
Morne Morkel: 7/10 Spearheaded KKR's bowling with distinction. He was unplayble on helpful surfaces. Only problem was that he often bowled too short. M: 12; O: 48; W: 12; E/R: 7.64.
Patrick Cummins: 5/10 The young fast bowler delivered THE ball of IPL 7, beating CSK opener Dwayne Smith with both lethal pace and late movement. Deserved to play more than just one game. M: 1; O: 4; W: 11; E/R: 7.25.
Sunil Narine: 9/10 In his third IPL season, the West Indies off-spinner continued to bamboozle international batsmen with his clever variations and bagful of tricks. He was not only effective while bowing in Powerplay overs, but also at the death. He missed out on the Purple Cap narrowly, but his 21 wickets were instrumental in KKR reeling off nine wins in a row enroute to the title. M: 16; O: 64; W: 21; E/R: 6.35.
Piyush Chawla: 7/10 Has an uncanny habit of picking wickets. His big six off KXIP's Mitchell Johnson in the penultimate over of the final virtually sealed the fate of the match. M: 11; O: 39.3; W: 14; E/R: 7.67.
Umesh Yadav: 7/10 Bowled well throughout but was a touch expensive. M: 12; O: 45; W: 11; E/R: 8.15.
Vinay Kumar: 4/10 His lack of pace can be a boon or curse depending on the playing surface. M: 9; Ovs: 32; Wkts: 7; E/R: 8.78.
Chris Lynn: 4/10 Got only two games and scored a 45 in one. M: 2; R: 58; HS: 45; S/R: 118.
Andre Russell: 1/10 Was not up to the mark and was dropped. M: 2; R: 2; Ovs: 5; Wkt: 1; E/R: 10.40.
Manvinder Bisla: 1/10 Was largely consigned to the bench. M: 1; R: 3; Ct: 1.
Yusuf Pathan: 6/10 Played the most telling and explosive knock of the tournament. But for his 22-ball 72 against Sunrisers Hyderabad, KKR would not have qualified as the No 2 team. Played his part in the final, too, with a quickfire 36, but wasn't consistent enough. Hardly got a chance to bowl, but was well below par in the field. M: 15, R: 268, HS 72; S/R: 162
Coach: Trevor Bayliss: Coached Sri Lanka to the World T20 final in 2009 and the World Cup final in 2011. Bayliss was hired by KKR in 2012 after he guided the Sydney Sixers to Big Bash glory. Under him, KKR have won two IPL crowns.
Bowling Mentor: Wasim Akram: The recent renaissance enjoyed by Umesh Yadav could be credited to the Pakistani's insightful tips. He is a master of his art and even foreign players like Narine and Morkel have acknowledged his inputs.
Assistant Coach: Vijay Dahiya: The former India stumper has worked closely with Gambhir as Delhi coach and knows the domestic players well. He is hands on and very passionate about the game and enjoys the challenge that t20 cricket throws up.
Batting Coach: WV Raman: He is an experienced coached and has tasted success with Bengal and TN. Having watched domestic cricket as s coach and commentator, he knows the Indian players rather well.