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The 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will commence next month in the United Arab Emirates, and we will finally get to see the world's best players in action after months.
With the tournament expected to be a run-fest as usual, batsmen can be expected to notch up massive scores to shepherd their teams to the playoffs.
Orange Cap winners in the IPL
Last year, David Warner won the Orange Cap, which is awarded to the leading run-scorer in the IPL season, with 692 runs in 12 games. The Australian has won the accolade 3 times, the most in the history of the IPL, and except him, only Chris Gayle has won the accolade more than once.
In an IPL season, Virat Kohli's 973 runs in the 2016 IPL is the highest total by a batsman.
Apart from the usual suspects, we take a look at 5 dark horses who could win the Orange Cap for the first time in the 2020 IPL.
Honourable Mentions: Quinton de Kock, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer
#5 Suresh Raina
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) superstar Suresh Raina has been one of the most consistent batsmen in the history of the IPL, leading to him being given the moniker 'Mr. IPL'.
The elegant southpaw has scored over 350 runs in all IPL seasons (more than 400 runs in 10 seasons as well) and is the second-highest run-scorer in the league behind only Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli. However, Raina has never won the Orange Cap in all his years in the IPL.
The CSK No. 3 now finds himself outside the Indian team and clearly has a point to prove in the upcoming IPL edition. An excellent season for MS Dhoni's men could well win him an international recall, and Raina himself will be highly motivated to prove his detractors, who claim that he is far past his prime, wrong.
CSK's fortunes also hinge on Raina, and he will have to be at his best on the turning pitches of UAE if they are to seriously fight for the title.
#4 AB de Villiers
AB de Villiers is one of RCB's greatest players of all time and barring a poor season in 2017, has been incredibly consistent for the team. In the 2019 IPL, the South African scored 442 runs at an average of 44.20 and a strike rate of 154.00, which are both higher than his career averages in the tournament.
De Villiers seems to be ageing like fine wine and with RCB finding the UAE as a favourable venue, he and his team have the resources and drive to finally bring an IPL title home to the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Another thing that points to the former Proteas captain having an excellent season is his recent form in the ambitious '3TC' tournament conducted last month. The Eagles skipper scored a 24-ball 61 to win the Solidarity Cup for his team, and showed no signs of rust.
AB de Villiers will need to step up to the plate if Kohli's men are to mount a title challenge and the 36-year-old might just become the third RCB batsman to win the Orange Cap.
#4 Rishabh Pant
Rishabh Pant for India and Rishabh Pant in the IPL are two completely different entities, as the wicket-keeper splendid 2019 IPL season's suggested. In 16 games, the 22-year-old amassed 488 runs to finish as the season's 7th highest run-scorer.
Pant has lost his place in the Test side to Wriddhiman Saha and in the ODI side to Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) captain KL Rahul. With him having faced criticism from all corners of the cricketing fraternity, the southpaw will be keen on silencing his naysayers.
Under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer at the Delhi Capitals (DC), Pant is one of the centrepieces of a team brimming with youth and experience. With a host of veterans to guide him, most notably coach Ricky Ponting, the Delhi man could have another record-breaking season in the IPL.
Pant has the freedom to express himself at DC, and he is one to watch out for in the upcoming IPL.
#2 Jonny Bairstow
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) wicket-keeper Jonny Bairstow has played only season in the IPL, but has become one of the players that David Warner's team has built itself around for this season.
Forming a lethal partnership with his captain at the top of the order, the Englishman scored 445 runs in just 10 games to finish as the 2019 IPL's 10th highest run-scorer.
Bairstow's white-ball prowess is no secret, and he has made an opening slot in the England limited-overs setups his own. The 30-year-old exhibited his strokeplay and aggression in the recently concluded ODI series against Ireland, in which he scored a 41-ball 82 studded with 14 fours and 2 sixes.
Bairstow has a solid supporting cast around him at SRH and can play his natural game right from the outset. He could well become the third SRH batsman to win the Orange Cap, after Warner and Williamson.
#1 Jos Buttler
Rajasthan Royals (RR) superstar Jos Buttler has been in the news for many reasons lately. After his Test place was under scrutiny, the England wicket-keeper played a match-winning fourth-innings knock against Pakistan in the 1st Test to squash any doubts, at least temporarily.
Buttler's limited-overs prowess, however, has never been in question and since joining RR, he has elevated his game to a whole new level. In his two seasons at Jaipur, the 29-year-old has scored 548 runs in 13 games and 311 runs in 8 games respectively.
Buttler has shown unparalleled levels of consistency at the top of the order, with opposition bowlers having no answer to his wide range of shots in the powerplay. In the 2020 edition of the IPL, we could see him become the first-ever RR player to win the Orange Cap.
Also Read: CSK's playing XI in their first-ever IPL game: Where are they now?
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