The 25-year-old England fast bowler enjoyed a stunning season for Rajasthan Royals with both ball and bat, taking 20 wickets from 14 games with a tight economy rate of 6.55, while his lower-order hitting was a feature, blasting 113 runs at a strike rate of almost 180.
Archer also was outstanding in the field, with five catches, including a handful of spectacular ones, making him the obvious choice for the MVP gong.
“I am really grateful to receive this award,” Archer said. “The season did not go for the team as well as we would have liked but I hope this shows a little bit of what I can do and hopefully I can get it another year as well.”
Archer won the award ahead of two other fast bowlers, in Delhi’s Kagiso Rabada on 298 points and Mumbai’s Jasprit Bumrah on 269.5.
Mumbai Indians won the 2020 IPL title on Tuesday night in Dubai, confirming the winners of the famed purple and orange caps for most wickets and runs respectively.
Rabada took home the purple cap with 30 wickets, while Kings XI’s K.L. Rahul won the orange cap with 670 runs from 14 games, finishing ahead of Delhi’s Shikhar Dhawan who only managed 15 in the Final.
There was a host of awards for a variety of Mumbai Indians players, showcasing their all-round talent, with Final Player of the Match Trent Boult winning the Power Player of the Season.
Kieron Pollard won the Super Striker of the Season, Ishan Kishan claimed the crown for Most Sixes and Mumbai also won the Fair Play award.
Royal Challengers Bangalore’s Devdutt Paddikal won the Emerging Player of the Season and Rahul also claimed the Gamechanger of the Season.