IPL 2017: Highest run scorers, wicket-takers after Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers and Kedar Jadhav – any opposition would be wary to bowl to a batting lineup like this.
However, the Kolkata Knight Riders, in spite of scoring a below par 131, bowled with substance and style to dismantle this powerful batting lineup for the lowest total in the history of IPL. The Royal Challengers Bangalore fell like nine pins with a no batsman managing to score double digits and were all out for 49.
Sunil Narine and Gautam Gambhir played well at the top to stir KKR to a fighting total in the first innings. What followed was a rampage by three bowlers with 140-plus bowling speeds. Their balls kept whistling past the RCB willows, sometimes through them. KKR is looking like the team to look out for this IPL and Gautam Gambhir lifting the trophy is looking more and more probable with every match. Even yesterday, they won by a massive 82 runs in spite of putting such a low total on the board.
In the first match of the day, Kings XI Punjab found some form after beating the Gujarat Lions by 26 runs. Hashim Amla followed up on his century with a classy 65 and Axar Patel played a cameo of 34 off 17 balls to power KXIP to 188-6. In return, Suresh Raina’s team could manage just 162-7. The win has now helped KXIP move into the top 4 in the points table.
Let’s look at the leading run scorers and wicket takers of the tournament after the two matches:
Leading run scorers
A poll conducted during a KXIP game a few days ago read, “Is Hashim Amla a good t20 player?” I think this orange cap table has answered that question better than anyone can. In the last two innings, Amla has reinvented himself and has managed to overtake even David Warner in the overall runs scored in IPL 2017.
Amla has made a statement in this IPL and has managed to prove all his critics wrong.
| Position | Player | Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | 100s | 50s | Highest |
| 1 | Hashim Amla (KXIP) | 7 | 7 | 299 | 59.8 | 145.85 | 1 | 2 | 104* |
| 2 | David Warner (SRH) | 7 | 7 | 282 | 56.4 | 129.36 | 0 | 2 | 76* |
| 3 | Suresh Raina (GL) | 7 | 7 | 275 | 55 | 146.28 | 0 | 2 | 84 |
| 4 | Brendon McCullum (GL) | 7 | 7 | 264 | 37.71 | 149.15 | 0 | 2 | 72 |
| 5 | Nitish Rana (MI) | 7 | 7 | 263 | 43.83 | 139.89 | 0 | 3 | 62* |
| 6 | Manish Pandey (KKR) | 7 | 6 | 260 | 86.67 | 141.3 | 0 | 2 | 81* |
| 7 | Gautam Gambhir (KKR) | 7 | 7 | 243 | 48.6 | 137.29 | 0 | 2 | 76* |
| 8 | Shikhar Dhawan (SRH) | 7 | 7 | 235 | 33.57 | 118.09 | 0 | 1 | 70 |
| 9 | Sanju Samson (DD) | 6 | 6 | 224 | 37.33 | 142.68 | 1 | 0 | 102 |
| 10 | Jos Buttler (MI) | 7 | 7 | 213 | 30.43 | 156.62 | 0 | 1 | 77 |
Leading wicket takers
| Position | Player | Matches | Wickets | Overs | Runs | 5 Wickets | Economy | Best Figures |
| 1 | Bhuvaneshwar Kumar (SRH) | 7 | 16 | 28 | 176 | 1 | 6.29 | 5 for 19 |
| 2 | Mitchell McClenaghan (MI) | 7 | 12 | 28 | 243 | 0 | 8.68 | 3 for 24 |
| 3 | Chris Morris (DD) | 6 | 12 | 22 | 152 | 0 | 6.91 | 4 for 26 |
| 4 | Chris Woakes (KKR) | 7 | 10 | 22 | 205 | 0 | 9.32 | 3 for 6 |
| 5 | Rashid Khan (SRH) | 7 | 10 | 28 | 195 | 0 | 6.96 | 3 for 19 |
| 6 | Yuzvendra Chahal (RCB) | 7 | 10 | 23.3 | 159 | 0 | 6.77 | 3 for 16 |
| 7 | Pat Cummins (DD) | 6 | 9 | 23.1 | 172 | 0 | 7.42 | 2 for 20 |
| 8 | Imran Tahir (RPS) | 6 | 9 | 23 | 184 | 0 | 8 | 3 for 28 |
| 9 | Andrew Tye (GL) | 4 | 9 | 16 | 120 | 1 | 7.5 | 5 for 17 |
| 10 | Axar Patel (KXIP) | 7 | 8 | 26 | 197 | 0 | 7.58 | 2 for 33 |
Bhuvaneshwar Kumar continues to lead the purple cap race today and by a significant margin. Yesterday’s night match was dominated by bowlers and as a result, Woakes and Patel have risen up the rankings. Mitchell McClenaghan and Imran Tahir will have a chance of increasing their wicket count in the Mumbai Indians v Rising Pune Supergiant match today.
Let’s look at the points table:
| Position | Team | Matches | Won | Lost | No Result | NRR | Points | Last Result | Next Opponent |
| 1 | Mumbai Indians | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0.617 | 12 | Beat DD by 15 runs | RPS |
| 2 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1.177 | 10 | Beat RCB by 82 runs | RPS |
| 3 | Sunrisers Hyderabad | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0.481 | 8 | Lost to RPS by 6 wickets | RCB |
| 4 | Kings XI Punjab | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | -0.319 | 6 | Beat GL by 26 runs | SRH |
| 5 | Rising Pune Supergiant | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | -0.76 | 6 | Beat SRH by 6 wickets | MI |
| 6 | Delhi Daredevils | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0.848 | 4 | Lost to MI by 15 runs | KKR |
| 7 | Gujarat Lions | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | -0.844 | 4 | Lost to KXIP by 26 runs | RCB |
| 8 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | -1.21 | 4 | Lost to KKR by 82 runs | SRH |
Today, the second Maharashtra Derby of IPL 2017 will take place at the Wankhede stadium. With MI riding off 6 consecutive wins, they might be able to turn the result in their favour this time around. However, even RPS have the momentum with them, thanks to a Dhoni special in their last game. MI have the home ground advantage though.