The Indian Premier League (IPL) is undoubtedly the biggest T20 league on the planet. This is the only tournament where active Indian cricketers unite forces with the foreign stars and compete with the others in franchise cricket. Over the years, T20 cricket has evolved a lot. Earlier, the shortest format of the game was meant to be a cricket carnival where the fans could enjoy big shots in a short 3-hour match. However, the bowlers have come into the picture in the last few years as there have been multiple innovations in terms of bowling.
While the yorker delivery continues to be the most devastating one, balls like knuckle ball, slower bouncer, googly and wrist-spin have gained more prominence. It is very difficult for the bowlers to play with consistency in a format like T20 but the following 5 bowlers have managed to trouble the opposition batsmen with their skills in the IPL regularly. Here’s a look at the top 5 wicket-takers in IPL history.
5. Dwayne Bravo
Chennai Super Kings’ medium pace-bowling all-rounder, Dwayne Bravo is a former Purple Cap winner. The West Indian player has made a name for himself by grabbing wickets in the death overs. He has played 134 matches in IPL where he has scalped 147 wickets.
Bravo has a couple of 4-wicket hauls to his name which showcases his wicket-taking abilities. Also, he has an economy rate of 8.39 in the IPL. The highlighting statistic of his career is his strike rate of 17.59.
4. Piyush Chawla
One of the most underrated players of all time, Piyush Chawla has always been a consistent player in the IPL. He has featured in 157 IPL matches, picking up 150 wickets at a decent economy rate of 7.82.
The right-arm leggie has not achieved much success at the international level but in the IPL he has played a match-winning role for Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders. In 2020, he will turn up for the Chennai Super Kings.
3. Harbhajan Singh
Another member of the current Chennai Super Kings squad to be present on this elite list is the Punjabi off-spinner Harbhajan Singh. The 2011 World Cup winner started his Indian Premier League career with Mumbai Indians and he was a part of the team for 10 years.
He has played a majority of his 160 IPL matches for MI. In those matches, the Turbantor has dismissed 150 batsmen while giving away runs at an economy rate of just 7.05. He will be a big asset for MS Dhoni in IPL 2020.
2. Amit Mishra
Amit Mishra is popularly known as the ‘Hat-trick Hero’ in the Indian Premier League as he has taken the most hat-tricks in IPL history. The aforementioned statement shows his wicket-taking abilities hence, it is no surprise that he features in this list.
Just like Harbhajan Singh and Piyush Chawla, Mishra has played all the seasons in the Indian Premier League. He will turn up for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2020 and his 157 wickets in 147 matches will add a lot of experience to the Delhi team.
1. Lasith Malinga
Surprisingly, the number one player on this list is not an Indian player. Lasith Malinga, who has even played the role of a bowling coach in IPL, holds the numero uno position with an astounding 170 wickets in IPL history.
The Mumbai Indians star has only played 122 matches in his career where he has taken 6 four-wicket hauls and 1 five-wicket haul. He is one of the few players who has been with the same franchise all through the IPL career. Malinga will look to add more wickets to his tally in 2020.
