'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
IPL is generally about big-hitting and high-scoring games, but it’s the bowlers who make the decisive impact eventually. It has hardly happened over the years that a bowler with the Purple Cap hasn’t been able to drive his team into the playoffs of the IPL.
The Indian pitches are considered to be spinner-friendly as most of the surfaces are low, slow and offer a fair bit of turn. But in the 12 editions of the IPL so far, only two spinners have won the Purple Cap.
Former Indian left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha did it in the third edition of the tournament in 2010, while South African leggie Imran Tahir took the honors in the previous edition in 2019.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar is the only bowler in the history of the IPL to win the Purple Cap twice. The right-arm medium pacer did it in consecutive seasons in 2016 and 2017, while playing for the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Here are the 5 players who can win the Purple Cap in IPL 2020:
#5 Mohammed Shami
Mohammed Shami has not had a great deal of success in the IPL so far, despite him being one of the mainstays of India’s bowling line-up in all formats in recent times. However, this might be Shami’s year in the IPL, given the rich vein of form he is in currently.
Because of the way he presents the seam, Shami is always going to be a threat with the new ball as he can get the ball to move both ways. Recently, he showed on the tour of New Zealand that he could bowl good yorkers as well.
Also see – World Test Championship points table
Death bowling has been a bit of a weak link in Shami’s bowling in the last few years. However, he seems much improved with that aspect of his game now and might turn out to be the trump card for Kings XI Punjab in the upcoming edition of the IPL.
#4 Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah has not been in the greatest of form since his comeback from a stress fracture, but he is a world-class bowler and is always going to be one of the contenders for the Purple Cap, given the fact that he is a wicket-taker at any stage of the innings.
Bumrah bowls at the death for Mumbai Indians in all the games and the reason why he is a nightmare for any batsman at the death is the length that he bowls. Bumrah is quick through the air which obviously helps, but the consistency with which he finds the block-hole is incredible.
While he is looking to bowl yorkers, Bumrah doesn’t always get predictable, as he has got change-ups in his armory as well. He has got a fantastic off-cutter and he can also bowl hard lengths on pitches which offer a bit of pace and bounce.
While Bumrah is quite lethal in the latter stages of the innings, the Mumbai Indians star's ability to extract the seam movement makes him quite a useful prospect with the new ball as well.
#3 Kagiso Rabada
Kagiso Rabada would probably have won the Purple Cap last year if he had not got injured midway through the tournament. The 24-year-old is one of the fastest bowlers in the world at the moment and has got an incredible skill-set to go with his pace.
Rabada can swing the new ball early on, but once the ball stops swinging, he has got the ability to drag his length ever so subtly and start putting the ball in the back of the length area to not offer any easy drives to the batsmen.
Rabada has got strong shoulders as well and he hits the deck really hard, which allows him to get an extra bit of zip and bounce off the surface. The South African speedster often catches the batsmen in a position where they are not fully committed on the front foot but are not fully back either.
The Arun Jaitley Stadium, which is the Delhi Capitals' home venue in the IPL, has an abrasive surface that roughs up the ball quite a bit and it starts reverse-swinging towards the end of the innings.
Rabada’s pace through the air and his wrist position at the time of release makes him a wonderful exponent of reverse swing. If the ball reverses, Rabada is extremely tough to face in death.
#2 Deepak Chahar
Deepak Chahar has probably swung the new ball more than any other bowler in the last couple of IPL seasons, and Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni has used him brilliantly as well. Dhoni doesn’t look to hold Chahar back for an over or two in the death.
If Chahar is swinging the ball well, Dhoni just persists with him upfront and uses his full quota right at the very top. And to Chahar’s credit, he has often put on match-winning performances for CSK with the new ball.
Chahar doesn’t swing the ball into the right-handers a lot, but his strength is the shape that he gets away from the right-handers and the control that he has while bowling those out-swingers. He bowls full most of the time and in T20 cricket, a bowler has a very small margin of error while bowling full, but Chahar hardly offers any half-volleys to the batsmen.
Apart from his ability to swing the ball, Chahar has got a good bouncer as well, which helps him push the batsmen on the back-foot every now and again.
#1 Imran Tahir
Imran Tahir is one of the leading leg-spinners going around in white-ball cricket, but the surface in Chennai also helps him a lot. The pitch at the M.Chidambaram stadium offers him a lot of purchase.
Tahir is not a loopy leg-spinner. He hardly gives the ball any air, but he generates quite a lot of turn despite not necessarily getting the ball up and down. Since he is so quick through the air, it’s hard for the batsmen to come down the pitch against him with any sort of conviction.
Tahir can spin the ball into the right-handers as well with an expertly disguised wrong one and he does that without any significant change in his action.
Since most of the batsmen are not sure which way the ball will spin, they often try and read Tahir off the back-foot and get caught in the crease to be trapped in front of the wickets.
Tahir won the Purple Cap in IPL 2019 and will be in contention to retain it this year. He is a sure starter for CSK and will be playing most of the games on a surface which is tailor-made for him.
Brand-new app in a brand-new avatar! Download CricRocket for fast cricket scores, rocket flicks, super notifications and much more! 🚀☄️
