IPL 2015: Top Run-Scorers, Strike Rates and Averages After May 4 Fixtures
On a day which seemed poised to yield some sensational batting, the bowlers stole the spotlight in the Indian Premier League as both Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders were able to defend mediocre scores to bag vital wins.
Chennai seemed set for defeat after a strong bowling performance from Royal Challengers Bangalore, but their opposite numbers responded with the ball in hand, taking big wickets at crucial moments and finishing up with a 24-run win.
The days’s second game followed suit, although Sunrisers Hyderabad lost by a more substantial margin. Again, the Knight Riders posted an average score, but some brilliant bowling—including two wickets in the first over—sapped any momentum from Hyderabad’s chase. Eventually, they fell well short in a 35-run win for the reigning champions.
Here’s how these two matches affected a variety of individual classifications and a closer examination of some of the best action from this IPL doubleheader.
Top 10 Run-Scorers
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| Player | Team | Runs |
| Ajinkya Rahane | Rajasthan | 430 |
| David Warner | Hyderabad | 382 |
| Brendon McCullum | Chennai | 315 |
| Virat Kohli | Bangalore | 303 |
| Rohit Sharma | Mumbai | 297 |
| Shreyas Iyer | Delhi | 290 |
| JP Duminy | Delhi | 276 |
| Robin Uthappa | Kolkata | 276 |
| Dwayne Smith | Chennai | 274 |
| AB de Villiers | Bangalore | 256 |
Statistics courtesy of the official IPL website.
Top 10 Batting Averages
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| Player | Team | Innings | Runs | Average |
| Ajinkya Rahane | Rajasthan | 9 | 430 | 61.42 |
| Yusuf Pathan | Kolkata | 8 | 145 | 48.33 |
| Andre Russell | Kolkata | 7 | 231 | 46.20 |
| JP Duminy | Delhi | 8 | 276 | 46.00 |
| Virat Kohli | Bangalore | 9 | 303 | 43.28 |
| David Warner | Hyderabad | 9 | 382 | 42.44 |
| Chris Gayle | Bangalore | 7 | 240 | 40.00 |
| Lendl Simmons | Mumbai | 6 | 239 | 39.83 |
| Shane Watson | Rajasthan | 5 | 193 | 38.60 |
| Corey Anderson | Mumbai | 4 | 114 | 38.00 |
Statistics courtesy of the official IPL website.
Top 10 Strike Rates
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| Player | Team | Runs | Strike Rate |
| Deepak Hooda | Rajasthan | 118 | 203.44 |
| Andre Russell | Kolkata | 231 | 194.11 |
| Brendon McCullum | Chennai | 315 | 174.03 |
| Kieron Pollard | Mumbai | 233 | 165.24 |
| Harbhajan Singh | Mumbai | 97 | 161.66 |
| David Warner | Hyderabad | 382 | 161.18 |
| AB de Villiers | Bangalore | 256 | 161.00 |
| Rohit Sharma | Mumbai | 297 | 150.00 |
| Chris Gayle | Bangalore | 240 | 144.57 |
| Angelo Mathews | Delhi | 109 | 143.42 |
Minimum 50 runs scored. Statistics courtesy of the official IPL website.
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Top 10 Wicket-Takers
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| Player | Team | Wickets |
| Ashish Nehra | Chennai | 17 |
| Dwayne Bravo | Chennai | 16 |
| Imran Tahir | Delhi | 13 |
| Lasith Malinga | Mumbai | 13 |
| Bhuvneshwar Kumar | Hyderabad | 13 |
| Yuzvendra Chahal | Bangalore | 12 |
| Nathan Coulter-Nile | Delhi | 11 |
| Anureet Singh | Punjab | 11 |
| Mitchell Starc | Bangalore | 11 |
| David Wiese | Bangalore | 10 |
Statistics courtesy of the official IPL website.
Top 10 Bowling Figures
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| Player | Team | Date | Opponent | Figures |
| Ashish Nehra | Chennai | April 22 | Bangalore | 4/10 |
| JP Duminy | Delhi | April 18 | Hyderabad | 4/17 |
| Nathan Coulter-Nile | Delhi | May 1 | Punjab | 4/20 |
| Lasith Malinga | Mumbai | April 25 | Hyderabad | 4/23 |
| Sandeep Sharma | Punjab | April 18 | Kolkata | 4/25 |
| Imran Tahir | Delhi | April 12 | Rajasthan | 4/28 |
| Brad Hogg | Kolkata | April 30 | Chennai | 4/29 |
| David Wiese | Bangalore | April 19 | Mumbai | 4/33 |
| Ashish Nehra | Chennai | May 4 | Bangalore | 3/19 |
| Trent Boult | Hyderabad | April 27 | Punjab | 3/19 |
Statistics courtesy of the official IPL website.
Top 10 Economy Rates
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| Player | Team | Overs | Wickets | Economy |
| Mitchell Starc | Bangalore | 18.0 | 11 | 5.83 |
| Suresh Raina | Chennai | 7.0 | 1 | 5.85 |
| Zaheer Khan | Delhi | 8.0 | 2 | 6.00 |
| Brad Hogg | Kolkata | 14.0 | 8 | 6.21 |
| Sandeep Sharma | Punjab | 34.0 | 9 | 6.23 |
| Ravichandran Ashwin | Chennai | 18.0 | 6 | 6.50 |
| Ashish Nehra | Chennai | 40.0 | 17 | 6.52 |
| Moises Henriques | Hyderabad | 12.0 | 5 | 6.58 |
| JP Duminy | Delhi | 14.0 | 8 | 6.71 |
| Piyush Chawla | Kolkata | 26.0 | 7 | 6.96 |
Minimum three overs bowled. Statistics courtesy of the official IPL website.
Standout Performers
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Bowlers Seize The IPL Spotlight
From the very first over bowled on this exciting day of IPL action, it was clear that the batsmen were not going to have things their own way.
For Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mitchell Starc was magnificent with the new ball. Bowling to dangerous Chennai Super Kings opener Dwayne Smith, the Aussie was absolutely immaculate; the West Indies star didn’t get a bat on any of the opening five balls before being dismissed for a duck off the sixth.
His overall figures of three for 24 weren’t enough to help his team seize victory, as the star batsmen in this Bangalore team toiled badly. But in the interests of giving credit to the bowler, Ashish Nehra was magnificent for the Chennai Super Kings, as he demolished the Royal Challengers’ middle order.
As noted by cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle, there was some magnificent bowling on display in the final embers of the innings:
"Irrespective of the quality of the decisions, this is death bowling of the highest class from Ashish Nehra.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) May 4, 2015"
The quality with the ball was evident in the second match of the day, too, especially from Umesh Yadav. After making a respectable total of 167 for seven from their 20 overs, Kolkata Knight Riders needed someone to take some early wickets, and the India international responded superbly.
He took the big wicket of David Warner with his third ball, before smashing one into the stumps again with the final ball of the over to dismiss Naman Ojha. As noted by CricBuzz, his blistering bowling up front gave Sunrisers Hyderabad a lot to do:
"Umesh Yadav is on fire. Naman Ojha is bowled neck and crop, the off-stump goes for a walk. #SRH in dire straits already. #IPL #KKRvSRH
— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) May 4, 2015"
While the focus in this format is often on batting power, the quality of bowling in the competition as a whole really has been outstanding so far.
The manner in which the aforementioned trio performed on Monday was especially impressive. These players are all so adept at making a major impression at the beginning and the end of matches; up to now, it’s tough to disagree with the notion that Starc, Nehra and Yadav are all the most important players in their respective teams’ setups.
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