Top opening pairs in IPL
Here are the stats and facts regarding the top opening partners and partnerships in Indian Premier League.
There have been many different opening combinations for all the teams at different stages of the tournaments and in different seasons.
Let’s have a look at the best 5 opening pairs till date.
Best opening pairs based on number of runs scored
| Inn | Runs | Batsman 1 | Batsman 2 | For | Avg | 50s | 100s | Ducks | HS |
| 23 | 976 | Mike Hussey | Murali Vijay | CSK | 44.36 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 159 |
| 24 | 842 | Adam Gilchrist | Herschelle Gibbs | DC | 35.08 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 101 |
| 24 | 732 | Virender Sehwag | Gautam Gambhir | DD | 30.5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 122 |
| 20 | 718 | Sanath Jayasuriya | Sachin Tendulkar | MI | 35.90 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 127 |
| 26 | 634 | Virender Sehwag | David Warner | DD | 25.96 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 146 |
Mike Hussey and Murali Vijay have been a very consistent opening pair for Super Kings in the last 2 editions of the IPL and are continuing the same in the 6th edition too.
Best batting averages for opening pairs
(Minimum of 5 innings)
| Inn | Runs | Batsman 1 | Batsman 2 | For | Avg | 50s | 100s | Ducks | HS | |
| 7 | 440 | Rahul Dravid | Shane Watson | RR | 62.85 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 134* | |
| 16 | 335 | Brendon McCullum | Mahela Jayawardene | KTK | 55.83 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 128 | |
| 10 | 533 | Brendon McCullum | Gautam Gambhir | KKR | 53.33 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 113 | |
| 9 | 413 | Adam Gilchrist | VVS Laxman | DC | 51.62 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 155* | |
| 23 | 976 | Mike Hussey | Murali Vijay | CSK | 44.36 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 159 | |
Highest Partnership for the first wicket
| Runs | Balls | Batsman 1 | Batsman 2 | For | Vs | Venue | Year |
| 163 | 108 | Dwayne Smith | Sachin Tendulkar | MI | RR | Jaipur | 2012 |
| 159 | 89 | Mike Hussey | Murali Vijay | CSK | RCB | Chennai | 2011 |
| 155 | 72 | Adam Gilchrist | VVS Laxman | DC | MI | Mumbai | 2008 |
| 146 | 70 | Virender Sehwag | David Warner | DD | KXIP | Delhi | 2011 |
| 139 | 104 | Mike Hussey | Murali Vijay | CSK | KXIP | Mohali | 2013 |
Some Facts
* Murali Vijay/Mike Hussey and Swapnil Asnodkar/Graeme Smith are the only opening pairs to score 2 century partnerships in IPL.
* Matthew Hayden/Parthiv Patel have registered 3 ‘Duck’ opening partnerships.
* Murali Vijay/Mike Hussey also hold the record for most 50s by opening pairs(5).
* Dwayne Smith/Sachin Tendulkar (108) and Mike Hussey/Murali Vijay (104) are the only pairs to face 100 balls in a match for the first wicket.
(Stats are updated till the end of the CSK vs KXIP game on 10th April, 2013)