The ongoing season of the Indian Premier League has presented before us an unprecedented trend. Most matches this season have been won by the side batting second, and following the trend, most captains these days are electing to field first after winning the toss. With the pitches remaining more or less the same throughout the match and the dew factor coming into play later in the match, teams are preferring to field first in order to shield their bowlers from the effects of dew as well as helping their batsmen make up their minds after knowing as to exactly how many runs they are required to chase.
Consequently, there have been several batsmen who have been instrumental in their teams’ victories while chasing targets. Big match situations have often required batsmen to keep a calm head and go about things in a phased manner. There have batsmen who have done so with a ridiculous amount of ease and have been hailed as some of the best chasers in IPL’s history. Here, we take a look at 5 such batsmen.
5. David Warner
The Sunrisers Hyderabad captain, who has been excellent for his side with the bat this season, has an impeccable record while chasing targets in the IPL. Having played for two franchises in his career, the Delhi Daredevils, and the Sunrisers Hyderabad, Warner has accumulated 3015 runs from 95 matches at an average of 36.32 and a strike-rate of 142.01 with two centuries.
Out of those runs, he has scored 894 runs in 19 matches while batting second in matches that his team has won, and he has scored those runs at a staggering average of 68.76. His strike-rate, while hunting down targets, has been a notch higher at 162.54. It is a pity that there have only been 19 occasions when a team featuring him has won the match while chasing.
In all appearances in the second innings, Warner has 1537 runs from 46 matches at 38.42 and a strike-rate of 146.10. Hence, the Australian southpaw qualifies as one of then most prolific run chasers in then history of the Indian Premier League.
4. Suresh Raina
Closely following Warner, in terms of leadership, ex-Chennai Super Kings vice-captain, and the captain of the Gujarat Lions, Suresh Raina has had an impeccable record while chasing targets as well. Being the only player till date to not have missed a single IPL game, although he is likely to miss one soon, Raina was instrumental in CSK’s success, batting at his preferred No. 3 position.
On innumerable occasions, Raina has rescued his team after the fall of early wickets and has provided solidity to the batting order through his controlled aggression. He had been a lynchpin of the CSK line-up before the franchise was unceremoniously sacked after the alleged involvement in corrupt practices.
While chasing, and in matches that his team won batting second, Raina has scored 1354 runs from 46 matches, at an average of 45.13, and a strike rate of 137.88. His ability to consolidate the innings after the fall of early wickets, accelerate towards the end and finish the game off with his sheer power has been known to all, and it easily makes him one of the best chasers in IPL’s history.
3. Rohit Sharma
The captain of the defending champions, the Mumbai Indians, Rohit Sharma has seen a change of fortunes, both on a personal level, as well as with the franchise since 2013 when he was first handed over the captaincy of the side. His form and importance at the top of the order, as well as his leadership skills, have sky-rocketed since then, and he has become one of only three captains to have won the league twice.
With the bat in hand, Rohit has been the aggressor at the top of the order for Mumbai and has also adopted the role of a sheet anchor, as was evident this season. In winning causes while batting second, Rohit has scored 1154 runs from 40 matches at a staggering average of 50.17 and a strike-rate of 126.95.
While questions have been raised about his ability to score runs on different surfaces across the world, as far as the IPL is concerned, Sharma qualifies as one of the most prolific batsmen in then league, the testimony to which is his 2nd position, only behind Suresh Raina, in the list of all-time run-scorers in the IPL. From 139 matches, Rohit has 3798 runs at 33.91 and a strike rate of 131.92.
2. Virat Kohli
Perhaps the master of run-chases in world cricket right now, Virat Kohli has outrageous numbers when it comes to chasing targets and winning games for his team. Having played only for the Royal Challengers Bangalore since his debut in 2008, Kohli has been one of the three fabled heavyweights of the franchise, upon whom it has heavily relied.
His international credentials kept aside if we consider his IPL stats while chasing in winning causes, the Delhi-born batsman has 1216 runs from 44 games at a stupendous average of 55.27 and a strike-rate of 143.05. Given his penchant for chasing targets, the testimony to which is his average of 91.80 while batting second in T20I, Kohli has been the most viable threat for the opposition, whenever RCB bat second.
Kohli’s overall stats are not ordinary either, as he is the third-highest run scorer in the history of the league, with 3705 runs at 35.62 at a strike-rate of 127.18. The RCB captain’s exploits with the bat have been well known, as he has already been hailed as one of the best in the game, and his extraordinary numbers while chasing makes him one of the best chasers in the IPL.
1. Chris Gayle
The big West Indian has been, over the years, the legend that perhaps the T20 format needed in order to carve out a niche for itself. Not only has Gayle scored runs at a breathtaking pace, he has given the essence to the shortest format of the game and has shown to the world as to what exactly the format stands for.
The man who admits that he plays for the entertainment of his fans has been the most dominant run-chaser in all of IPL’s history, as he has, in matches that a team featuring him has won batting second, scored 1247 runs in 24 games at a mind-boggling average of 77.93 and a stupendous strike-rate of 161.94.
Gayle holds the record for the highest individual score in the history of the league with his 175* that he has scored against the now-defunct Pune Warriors India at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru in 2013.
The Caribbean is also one of the best all-time run scorers in the league’s history, with 3212 runs from 86 games at an average of 44.00 and a strike rate of 152.5, with 5 centuries- the most by any batsman.
Brand-new app in a brand-new avatar! Download CricRocket for fast cricket scores, rocket flicks, super notifications and much more! 🚀☄️
