IPL 2015: Top Run-Scorers, Leading Averages After Kings XI vs. Royals
Rajasthan Royals made a winning start to their IPL campaign in 2015 as they beat Kings XI Punjab by 26 runs on Friday in Pune.
James Faulkner's quick-fire 46 was key for Rajasthan as they recovered from a poor start, Anureet Singh the star for Kings XI with the ball.
Not one of the Kings XI big-hitters could really get going, and they eventually fell a long way short of the target.
Here’s how the match changes the various individual classifications in the early days of the tournament.
Top 10 Run-Scorers
1 of 7
| Player | Team | Runs |
| Rohit Sharma | Mumbai | 98 |
| Albie Morkel | Delhi | 73 |
| Gautam Gambhir | Kolkata | 57 |
| Corey Anderson | Mumbai | 55 |
| James Faulkner | Rajasthan | 46 |
| Suryakumar Yadav | Kolkata | 46 |
| Manish Pandey | Kolkata | 40 |
| Murali Vijay | Kings XI | 37 |
| Dwayne Smith | Chennai | 34 |
| Steve Smith | Rajasthan | 33 |
All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.
Top 10 Batting Averages
2 of 7
| Player | Team | Average |
| Gautam Gambhir | Kolkata | 57.00 |
| James Faulkner | Rajasthan | 46.00 |
| Manish Pandey | Kolkata | 40.00 |
| Murali Vijay | Kings XI | 37.00 |
| Dwayne Smith | Chennai | 34.00 |
| Steve Smith | Rajasthan | 33.00 |
| Faf du Plessis | Chennai | 32.00 |
| MS Dhoni | Chennai | 30.00 |
| Deepak Hooda | Rajasthan | 30.00 |
| George Bailey | Kings XI | 24.00 |
All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.
Top 10 Strike Rates
3 of 7
| Player | Team | Runs | SR |
| Suryakumar Yadav | Kolkata | 46 | 230.00 |
| Deepak Hooda | Rajasthan | 30 | 200.00 |
| Brendon McCullum | Chennai | 4 | 200.00 |
| Mohit Sharma | Chennai | 2 | 200.00 |
| Wriddhiman Saha | Kings XI | 7 | 175.00 |
| Manish Pandey | Kolkata | 40 | 166.66 |
| Rohit Sharma | Mumbai | 98 | 150.76 |
| Ravichandran Ashwin | Chennai | 12 | 150.00 |
| Yuvraj Singh | Delhi | 9 | 150.00 |
| Steve Smith | Rajasthan | 33 | 143.47 |
All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Top 10 Wicket-Takers
4 of 7
Player | Team | Wickets |
| Anureet Singh | Kings XI | 3 |
| Ashish Nehra | Chennai | 3 |
| James Faulkner | Rajasthan | 3 |
| Nathan Coulter-Nile | Delhi | 3 |
| Morne Morkel | Kolkata | 2 |
| Mitchell Johnson | Kings XI | 2 |
| Dwayne Bravo | Chennai | 2 |
| Tim Southee | Rajasthan | 2 |
| JP Duminy | Delhi | 1 |
| Domnic Joseph | Delhi | 1 |
All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.
Top 10 Bowling Figures
5 of 7
| Player | Team | Runs | Wickets |
| Anureet Singh | Kings XI | 23 | 3 |
| Ashish Nehra | Chennai | 25 | 3 |
| James Faulkner | Rajasthan | 26 | 3 |
| Nathan Coulter-Nile | Delhi | 30 | 3 |
| Morne Morkel | Kolkata | 18 | 2 |
| Mitchell Johnson | Kings XI | 34 | 2 |
| Dwayne Bravo | Chennai | 36 | 2 |
| Tim Southee | Rajasthan | 36 | 2 |
| JP Duminy | Delhi | 15 | 1 |
| Dominic Joseph | Delhi | 18 | 1 |
All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.
Top 10 Economy Rates
6 of 7
Player | Team | Runs | Wickets | Econ |
| Morne Morkel | Kolkata | 18 | 2 | 4.50 |
| Sandeep Sharma | Kings XI | 19 | 1 | 4.75 |
| Pravin Tambe | Rajasthan | 15 | 0 | 5.00 |
| Amit Mishra | Delhi | 21 | 1 | 5.25 |
| Chris Morris | Rajasthan | 21 | 0 | 5.25 |
| Anureet Singh | Kings XI | 23 | 3 | 5.75 |
| Vinay Kumar | Mumbai | 21 | 0 | 6.00 |
| Dominic Joseph | Delhi | 18 | 1 | 6.00 |
| Ravichandran Ashwin | Chennai | 25 | 1 | 6.25 |
| Ashish Nehra | Chennai | 25 | 3 | 6.25 |
All statistics via ESPN Cricinfo.
Standout Performers
7 of 7
Faulkner Impresses with Both Bat and Ball
James Faulkner's 33-ball 46 was the key innings for Rajasthan Royals as they put together a total of 162, which proved to be enough to beat Kings XI Punjab.
Coming in with his side struggling, the Australian made a steadying 51-run partnership with Deepak Hooda before the latter fell.
With three sixes in his innings, Faulkner's was exactly the knock the Royals needed to put on some scoreboard pressure.
With the ball, Faulkner was similarly effective, as he took the late wickets of George Bailey and Mitchell Johnson to leave Kings XI with no chance.
The dismissal of Bailey came courtesy of a quite phenomenal catch from Karun Nair, Tim Southee leaping, and pawing the ball back from across the boundary in one of the great dismissals, per ByTheMin Cricket:
"That is utterly insane! Southee takes an extraordinary one-handed catch and then throws it back in as he loses balance for Nair to take.
— ByTheMin Cricket (@ByTheMinCricket) April 10, 2015"
He also dismissed the dangerous Glenn Maxwell for just seven, and Faulkner's form could prove very key for the Royals as the tournament moves on.
Anureet Singh's Travails go Unrewarded
Anureet Singh's 3-23 from four overs are the best bowling figures of the 2015 IPL so far, and his terrific effort was almost enough to restrict Rajasthan to a very lowly score.
He struck early with the dismissal of Ajinkya Rahane for a duck, and he finally did for Faulkner in the final over of the innings with three balls remaining.
Anureet also broke the key partnership, clean bowling Hooda for 30 from 15 balls, and his economy rate of below six an over was impressive in the face of some big hitting.
He managed to eclipse Mitchell Johnson in the first match of the tournament, and will hope his efforts are rewarded with a victory in the coming days.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
