IPL 2015: Top 10 Bowlers of Week 3 of Indian Premier League
There have been some fine efforts with the bat in week three of the Indian Premier League, but once again the bowlers have shown their mettle.
Fans have seen the value of extreme pace, a sharply spun googly and deadly death-bowling as Mitchell Starc, Imran Tahir and Lasith Malinga have excelled.
Here are the pick of the performances from the most recent round of matches, which took place between Sunday 19 and Saturday 25 April.
Ranking Criteria
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The top 10 rankings are based on individual, rather than cumulative performances.
Wickets and economy rate are the main criteria for inclusion in the list. Also factored in are the quality of the opposition and the state of the game.
For example, dismissing AB de Villiers in full flow will carry more weight than removing a tail-ender when the game is already won.
Honourable Mention: Yuzvendra Chahal (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
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Performance: 4-0-40-3 vs Chennai Super Kings
An economy rate of 10 runs per over in a losing effort wouldn't normally be a strong case for entry into the list of the week's top performers.
Take a closer look at Yuzvendra Chahal's figures against Mumbai Indians though and there's cause for inclusion.
The 24-year-old picked up three wickets, and in terms of the quality of the batsmen, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better trio. The leg-spinner dismissed Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni.
Those wickets should give him plenty of confidence for the remainder of the tournament.
10. David Wiese (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
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Performance: 4-0-33-4 vs Mumbai Indians
David Wiese produced one of the most memorable overs of this year's IPL, collecting three wickets against Mumbai Indians.
Chasing runs in the penultimate over, Kieron Pollard holed out to Yuzvendra Chahal on the legside boundary. Ambati Rayudu then repeated the trick the very next ball. Two deliveries later, Rohit Sharma tried to pull a short ball to the fence but ended up hitting it straight back to the South African all-rounder.
Not a bad start for a player making his Indian Premier League debut.
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9. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
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Performance: 4-0-26-3 vs Mumbai Indians
He may not have the pace of Dale Steyn or the swing of Trent Boult but Bhuvneshwar Kumar is quietly enjoying a fine IPL.
The 25-year-old has been economical throughout the competition and added wickets to the equation against Mumbai.
His three victims included the dangerous Kieron Pollard, who was just starting to rev up. Kumar has become one of the most reliable performers at the business end of an innings.
8. Umesh Yadav (Kolkata Knight Riders)
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Performance: 4-0-18-2 vs Delhi Daredevils
Economy and wickets are the ideal combination for a bowler in the IPL, and KKR's Umesh Yadav delivered just that against the Delhi Daredevils.
The Indian seamer put the squeeze on at the start of the innings then returned to dismiss the dangerous Angelo Mathews and Kedar Jadhav.
His final figures of two for 18 made him a worthy winner of the Man of the Match award.
7. Ravindra Jadeja (Chennai Super Kings)
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Performance: 4-0-22-3 vs Kings XI Punjab
Up until Saturday's game against Chennai, Ravindra Jadeja had made little impact with the ball in this year's IPL. The all-rounder showed his value against the Super Kings though, picking up three key wickets.
A target of 193 was always going to be a tough ask, and Jadeja made sure they didn't get close. His left-arm spin accounted for George Bailey, David Miller and Mitchell Johnson as last year's runners-up fell well short.
6. Harbhajan Singh (Mumbai Indians)
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Performance: 4-0-27-3 vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Harbhajan Singh is making a habit of putting in supremely efficient performances in this year's IPL.
The 34-year-old followed up two-wicket hauls against Kings XI and Chennai by adding three more victims against RCB.
And an impressive trio they were too. Manvinder Bisla, Chris Gayle and dangerous South African Rilee Rossouw all heard the fatal death rattle after being deceived by Harbhajan's flighty spinners.
Few would have predicted it at the start of the campaign but Harbhajan is very much in the running for Purple Cap honours.
5. Mitchell McClenaghan (Mumbai Indians)
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Performance: 4-0-20-3 vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
After a disappointing first couple of outings, Mitchell McClenaghan's IPL sprung into life against Hyderabad.
The burly New Zealander ripped out the heart of the Sunrisers top order, dismissing Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul and Ravi Bopara.
Lasith Malinga (see slide four) did the rest and a Mumbai campaign that was hanging by a thread still has hope.
4. Lasith Malinga (Mumbai Indians)
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Performance: 4-1-23-4 vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Defending a target of just 158, and with David Warner and Shikhar Dhawan rampant, the odds were stacked against Mumbai Indians. Lasith Malinga had other ideas.
The Sri Lankan dismissed Warner before returning later in the innings to wrap things up.
A Hyderabad comeback looked unlikely by the time Malinga started the penultimate over, but he sniffed out any chance of victory by picking up three more wickets.
He remains one of the best death bowlers in the game.
3. Mitchell Starc (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
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Performance: 4-0-22-3 vs Mumbai Indians
Mitchell Starc was named Man of the Tournament in the recent World Cup, and he's staking a pretty good late claim for a repeat in this year's IPL.
The Aussie paceman followed up his fine performance against Chennai with a match-winning effort against Mumbai.
The left-arm quick dismissed countryman Steve Smith and the big-hitting Stuart Binny before blowing away Dhawal Kulkarni.
In his first two appearances in this year's competition, Starc's eight overs have gone for just 46 runs. Throw in four wickets and it's hugely encouraging for RCB.
2. Imran Tahir (Delhi Daredevils)
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Performance: 4-0-22-3 vs Mumbai Indians
Imran Tahir once again showed the value of quality spin bowling in the shortest form of the game. The South African tempted Ambati Rayudu and Hardik Pandya to hole out at long off before bamboozling Mitchell McClenaghan.
Tahir gives his leg-break a real rip, but his most dangerous ball is the hard spun googly. He'll dismiss far better batsmen than McClenaghan as this year's IPL progresses.
1. Ashish Nehra (Chennai Super Kings)
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Performance: 4-0-10-4 vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Ashish Nehra is becoming a serious candidate for Purple Cap honours after a dominating performance against RCB.
The left-arm seamer took his wickets tally to 10 after adding another four victims against Bangalore. A quartet of wickets in any Twenty20 game is a fine feat. That his full quota of overs went for just 10 runs makes it doubly impressive.
The 35-year-old is bullish about his performances in IPL8. Speaking in a post-match interview, per ESPN Cricinfo, Nehra said: “I've been bowling well for the last couple of years but nobody was noticing since I was not taking wickets. I took wickets in the Champions League too, but this time I'm getting noticed.”
He certainly is.
Stats courtesy of ESPN Cricinfo.
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