IPL: Leading wicket-takers during each cycle after mega auctions
The Indian Premier League has completed a decade and has established itself as a big brand. There have been several spectacular performances from the players, be it a 17-year old Washington Sundar in 2017 or a veteran like Pravin Tambe who came into limelight making his IPL debut at the age of 41 and bagging a hat-trick in 2014 edition. The domestic players have benefitted immensely playing with and against the stalwarts of the game in front of big crowds at every venue.
The slam-bang nature of the T20 format made the experts, as well as the audience, speculate that the batsmen will be the only bosses. However, the bowlers have managed to carve their own niche with their different variations and a great control over their skills. In this article, let us have a look at the leading wicket-takers during each cycle after the mega auctions in 2008, 2011 and 2014.
#1 Season one to Season three: Rudra Pratap Singh
Rudra Pratap Singh was the leading wicket-taker during the first three seasons of the Indian Premier League. He picked 51 wickets during the period with an average of 24.09 and a good strike rate of 18.00. The left-arm pacer had a decent economy rate of 8.03 despite bowling prominently in the Powerplay and the slog phase of the game.
RP contributed immensely to the Deccan Chargers’ triumph in the 2009 edition of the tournament winning the Purple Cap with 23 wickets at an impressive economy rate of 6.98 and an average of just 18.13. The spell of 4/22 against Kolkata Knight Riders and an economical spell of 4-0-16-1 in the final while defending a low score were his noteworthy performances. His wicket tally during the three seasons was 15, 23 and 13 respectively. The great show in the 2009 season enabled RP Singh to make a comeback to the Indian squad for the World T20 that followed.
