5 most successful spinners in IPL history

The 11th Edition of IPL is now closer than ever, with just 10 days left before the start of the biggest T20 league in the world. With players from all over the world taking part in the league, IPL has, over the years, turned into one of the biggest sporting festivals in the world where the fans witness their favorite players play their best game. Once regarded as a league made especially for batsmen, IPL has seen a sudden increase in the performance graph of fast bowlers in recent times.

However, if there is one thing that has remained immutable ever since the first season back in 2008, it is the performance of the spinners. Perfectly exploiting the spinning conditions that the weather in the sub-continent provides, spinners have often turned out to be match winners for the franchises and would continue to do so in the future as well.

With a plethora of world-class spinners set to play in this season as well, we take a look at the 5 most successful spinners in the decade-long history of IPL.

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#5 Sunil Narine

Sunil Narine is still a mystery.

One of the main reasons for Kolkata Knight Riders' unimaginable success since 2012, Sunil Narine has been a constant presence in the KKR's lineup. Entering the season as the mystery weapon of the Gautam Gambhir-led side, Narine is still a hard nut to crack for the batsmen even after playing in the IPL for 6 years. Despite remodelling his bowling action after being reported multiple times through the years, Narine has continued to impress at every level of the game and is at his best when playing in the IPL.

In the six seasons that he has played so far in the IPL, Narine has played 82 matches, all for the Knight Riders, and has accounted for 95 dismissals of the opposition players. Along with the best bowling figures of 5/19 and a hat-trick in 2013, the Trinidadian has six other 4-wicket hauls to his name, which is more than any other player in the game. Narine boasts an exceptional economy of 6.33, an average of 21.37 and strike rate of 20.2, all of which are among the best in IPL history. Narine will again be part of KKR this season, and will surely be looking to add more wickets to his tally.

#4 Ravichandran Ashwin

Ashwin was a match-winner for CSK.

Many of the young cricket fans know Ashwin as India's premier spin bowling all-rounder in the longer format of the game. However, it was in the IPL where Ashwin made his first mark in the cricketing world. Yes, India's Test specialist started his career as a specialist in the shorter format for the Yellow army, and he has been mighty successful so far in the IPL. For almost 8 years, Ashwin was the go-to man for MS Dhoni, whether during his stint with Chennai Super Kings or Rising Pune Super Giants, and he delivered every single time, winning plenty of matches for his team.

Staring his IPL career in 2009, Ashwin has so far played 111 matches for both CSK and RPSG. In those 111 matches, Ashwin has taken a full 100 wickets and has best bowling figures of 4/34, which stands as his only 4-wicket haul in IPL. With a bowling strike rate of 22.9, average of 24.99 and an economy of 6.54, Ashwin will be a big asset for his new team, Kings XI Punjab in the 2018 season.

#3 Piyush Chawla

KKR's premier leg-spinner.

Piyush Chawla can easily be deemed as one of the unluckiest spinners in the history of Indian cricket. Having made his international debut at the time when Harbhajan Singh was at his prime, Chawla had to make way for other spinners like Ashwin and Jadeja during the latter part of his career. However, Chawla has been one of the most consistent performers in the 10 years history of IPL. Having played for both Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders for long tenures, Chawla has always been a valuable asset for whichever team he plays for.

Having been a part of every IPL season, Chawla has played 129 matches combined for both KXIP and KKR and has taken 126 wickets of the opposition batsmen. His best bowling figure of 4/19 is one of the two 4-wicket hauls that he has in his pocket. With an exceptional bowling strike rate of 20.3 and a decent average of 25.88, Chawla will once again be a force to a reckoned with when he plays for the Knight Riders for the fifth consecutive season.

#2 Harbhajan Singh

Mumbai's weapon of destruction.

One of the only two players who played for the same franchise during the first decade of IPL, Harbhajan Singh was a constant presence in the Blue Army's squad for the first 10 seasons. Despite falling off the radar for the National Team after the 2011 World Cup, Bhajji continued to perform for the Mumbai Indians in the subsequent seasons and was one of the MVPs of the squad in all of their IPL victories. Being the senior most spinner in the team, Bhajji not only groomed the up and coming spinners, he continued to perform as if he was in the prime of his career.

Bhajji played all of his 136 matches for the Mumbai Indians and took 127 wickets for his team. A master of variation, Bhajji has a strike rate of 22.9 and a stupendous economy of just 6.95. Along with the best figures of 5/18, he has one other 4-wicket haul to his name. With Bhajji playing for the Yellow Army this time out, his flamboyance will be very useful for his new franchise. Expect him to play the same senior spinner role for the Chennai Super Kings as well.

#1 Amit Mishra

The Numero-Uno spinner in IPL history.

Amit Mishra's international career has been, at best, a curious case to understand. The experienced leggie only played for India when the first-choice spinners were not available, and, despite performing brilliantly, was dropped from the team when they returned. However, if there is one thing that he can proudly boast about, it is his status as the numero-uno spinner in the history of IPL. Having played for 3 franchises through the years, Amit Mishra was undoubtedly the biggest star for his team.

Mishra has played 126 matches during the first decade of IPL and has 134 scalps to his name, which is second only to one Lasith Malinga. His record of 3 hat-tricks in IPL is an example of his prowess in the shorter format of the game. His best figures of 5/17, his only five-fer in IPL, is perfectly complemented by his three 4-wicket hauls. With a stunning bowling strike rate of 19.6 and an average of 24.33, the veteran spinner will once again be playing for Delhi Daredevils in this season and will be looking to close in on Malinga's record to become the most successful bowler in IPL history.