IPL 2016: Stats on Top Run-Scorers, Wicket-Takers, T20 Strike Rates and More
Virat Kohli reclaimed the orange cap as the Indian Premier League’s top run-scorer on Friday, guiding Royal Challengers Bangalore to a 13-run win over Rising Pune Supergiants.
AB de Villiers finished with the better numbers in the win, scoring 83 from 46 as opposed to Kohli’s 80 from 63, but in the run-scorer’s standings, the Indian star maintained his advantage over his team-mate.
Quentin de Kock of Delhi Daredevils still leads all player in strike rate, while Bhuvneshwar Kumar of Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mitchell McClenaghan of Mumbai Indians share the lead for the purple cap with seven wickets each. Here’s a look at the top run-scorers and wicket-takers of this year’s IPL season so far:
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| 1 | Virat Kohli | 4 | 4 | 0 | 267 | 80 | 66.75 | 192 | 139.06 |
| 2 | AB de Villiers | 4 | 4 | 0 | 249 | 83 | 62.25 | 142 | 175.35 |
| 3 | David Warner | 4 | 4 | 2 | 235 | 90* | 117.50 | 144 | 163.19 |
| 4 | Gautam Gambhir | 4 | 4 | 2 | 226 | 90* | 113.00 | 187 | 120.85 |
| 5 | Aaron Finch | 4 | 4 | 1 | 191 | 74 | 63.66 | 141 | 135.46 |
| 6 | Quinton de Kock | 3 | 3 | 1 | 184 | 108 | 92.00 | 103 | 178.64 |
| 7 | Francois du Plessis | 4 | 4 | 0 | 172 | 69 | 43.00 | 132 | 130.30 |
| 8 | Rohit Sharma | 5 | 5 | 1 | 165 | 84* | 41.25 | 120 | 137.50 |
| 9 | Ajinkya Rahane | 4 | 4 | 1 | 156 | 66* | 52.00 | 116 | 134.48 |
| 10 | Suresh Raina | 4 | 4 | 0 | 146 | 75 | 36.50 | 106 | 137.73 |
| 1 | Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 4 | 4 | 16.0 | 130 | 7 | 4/29 | 18.57 | 8.12 |
| 2 | Mitchell McClenaghan | 5 | 5 | 18.3 | 152 | 7 | 4/21 | 21.71 | 8.21 |
| 3 | Shane Watson | 4 | 4 | 16.0 | 126 | 6 | 2/25 | 21.00 | 7.87 |
| 4 | Murugan Ashwin | 4 | 4 | 14.0 | 112 | 6 | 3/36 | 18.66 | 8.00 |
| 5 | Dwayne Bravo | 4 | 4 | 15.0 | 130 | 6 | 4/22 | 21.66 | 8.66 |
| 6 | Amit Mishra | 3 | 3 | 8.0 | 48 | 5 | 4/11 | 9.60 | 6.00 |
| 7 | Mustafizur Rahman | 4 | 4 | 16.0 | 106 | 5 | 2/26 | 21.20 | 6.62 |
| 8 | Jasprit Bumrah | 5 | 5 | 18.0 | 144 | 5 | 3/31 | 28.80 | 8.00 |
| 9 | Andre Russell | 4 | 4 | 12.0 | 113 | 5 | 3/24 | 22.60 | 9.41 |
| 10 | Ravindra Jadeja | 3 | 3 | 10.5 | 68 | 4 | 2/18 | 17.00 | 6.27 |
Bangalore’s sensational lineup is capable of doing some incredible damage with the bat, and following Friday’s win over Pune, the team remains the only side to win in this year’s IPL when batting first, something they have now done twice.
Against Pune, Royal Challengers set a target of 186, and while Supergiants put together a fine showing, the new Twenty20 franchise never really got close, stranding at 172 for eight.
Of those 185 runs Bangalore put up, 163 came off the bat of either Kohli or De Villiers. Per cricket writer Mohandas Menon, they’ve now recorded three of their five career highest-partnership scores just this season, in four matches:
Per ESPN Cricinfo, even Shane Watson was in awe of the duo:
"I was a bit here and there tonight, but for Virat and AB to do their thing tonight was incredible. Some of the shots AB is playing at the moment is breathtaking. I'm happy to sit down and watch it at the moment. We knew if we bowl well, we can get home. It got a little bit tight in the end, especially when Thisara Perera was going. I was glad to get him out, otherwise the game could have been over. I wanted to bowl a wide yorker, that was the kind of delivery I wanted to get him to hit into the breeze. We haven't won a toss yet, so haven't had a choice but to defend. Our batting line-up is incredible, but as a bowling group, every game is a learning experience.
"
Kohli holds the lead in the race for the orange cap, and after his solid displays in the ICC World Championship earlier this year, it shouldn’t come as a major shock to see him carry his form over into the IPL.
De Villiers is playing like a man possessed, meanwhile. He seems to at least put the ball in play with every swing he takes, as this statistic from Cricbuzz shows:
With Chris Gayle set to return to India and the likes of Watson and Kane Richardson also capable of greatness with the bat, Bangalore’s attack looks almost unstoppable at this point. They may have just two wins out of four matches, but they’ve lost every toss so far; the fact they even have two wins is remarkable.
Watson added two wickets to his tally on Friday to bring his total up to six, one shy of Kumar and McClenaghan. Bangalore will be involved in plenty of shootouts this season, so there will be enough opportunities to keep adding wickets.
But with Richardson also finding his bowling form, Watson may be forced to watch as some of his team-mates take the wickets he needs to grab the purple cap. Like Kolkata Knight Riders, Bangalore’s group of bowlers is deep, and that actually hurts Watson’s chances at individual glory.
De Villiers’ knock took him closer to De Kock’s current strike rate, and as the 23-year-old’s number is mainly built around the 108-from-51 performance he put up against Bangalore, there’s a good chance De Villiers will overtake him soon.
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