Indian Premier League has never missed increasing the demand from the players, be it batting or bowling. One needs to be at their utmost touch to compete better with others in this particular tournament.
Even though we blame the flat wickets, heavy bats, and smaller boundaries in T20 for changing the face of the game, this procedure is hugely bringing the cricket tolerators back into the game.
Albeit we speak about equality in cricket, batsmen have always felt the edge over the bowlers in all the formats. And IPL is no exemption.
We find it more exciting to predict the top five contenders of the orange cap in this edition of IPL. So let’s dive into the story of the five batters.
David Warner
David Warner has donned the most number of orange caps in IPL. The dasher- type opening batsman from Australia, has been an exponent of IPL in his last five seasons. I never failed to go above the average mark in every season. With his contemporary touch with his game in England, the hulky Australian opener again comes into the tournament as one of the favorites to obtain the prestigious orange cap of IPL. Scoring runs is frivolous fun for the SRH skipper. Be it hitting mighty sixes above the roof or quick running between the wicket, he is exceptional in all.
Averaging 43.17 in 126 IPL matches, the brutal hitter is currently in the fourth spot in the list of most number of runs in IPL so far. He has made four gritty hundreds to his name in which every single hundred is entirely different from one another.
With getting the captainship once again, we could find more responsible Warner also on the field. Therefore, he is a sure bet for this competition of claiming the orange cap.
Virat Kohli
The skipper of the bold red Royal Challengers Bangalore can do wonders with his magnificent skillset. A pure mixture of mass and class. He has a great understanding of this tournament, and his game reading skill makes him even more special. Best at chasing. Loves pressure and excels in handling it.
Virat Kohli is the top run-scorer of IPL currently. Scored 5412 at an average of 37.85, the Delhi born batter has made 5 centuries so far in IPL. Especially the four centuries he made during the 2016 edition speaks a lot about his staunch character. An otherworldly fuel is needed for any batter to surpass the contribution of Virat in the 2016 edition. Virat has scored 973 runs in that season alone with an average of a whopping 81.03. This is rare. You cannot find such accomplishment in numbers from a batter.
Even though Virat wasn’t in great touch in the last year’s IPL edition, he managed an astonishing century to his name. With the nearly seven month hiatus, the king Kohli must have his right eye on the record book.
Jos Buttler
The English batter has created a storm in the IPL field in the edition of 2018. Last year was a continuity of the storm, but Jos Buttler had to pack his bag to England camp, and that, in turn, has made Buttler play only eight matches in the 2019 IPL. Even in that scenario, the wicket keeper-batter garnered 311 runs with an average of 38.88 along with three half-centuries.
The world-beater Jos Buttler has been in terrific form this time, finishing off the second T20 game against Australia. His switch hits, reverse sweeps kind of innovative shots makes him a nightmare for the bowlers.
Furthermore, the world cup champion has a remarkable ability to make use of the powerplay overs. Being at the top of the order, Jos would find a better vision of the game. Fortunately, the sluggish, traditionally slow pitches of UAE might not bother the English batter. So, once he gets on the roll, he will make everyone go wild with his entertaining batting and accumulation of runs.
KL Rahul
KL Rahul, the firebolt of the Indian team, is currently at the peak of his career. His intense passion for the game is paying off in a significant way now. He may well be the next cab off the rank in the Indian team. With the added responsibility of sporting the glove while fielding, the Karnataka-born cricketer has a great understanding of the pitch.
With the great last two years of IPL, the skipper of Kings XI Punjab has accumulated 1977 runs in IPL so far at a blistering average of 42.07.
KXIP needs the maximum bang of bucks at the top, since KL Rahul and Chris Gayle open for the Punjab based team, it ticks the box even brighter. With Gayle on the other end, KL can have a relaxed approach, fetching better output. So the possibility of KL to be a shining star is higher, making him a formidable contender.
Rohit Sharma
The White ball veteran hasn’t found the fluency in IPL till now. It’s because he puts his team first before himself. The concentration will be entirely on his side. Consequently, it has affected his batting. With so much understanding of his own game this time, Rohit Sharma can outwin the champs’ competition.
Albeit being an earth-shaking performer in IPL with the bat, the Mumbai born batter has garnered 4898 runs at an average of 31.60. Has made a significant impact with his 36 half-centuries in this tournament. And has got a century to his name, which came in 2012.
Being an ardent lover of batting, the hitman might be ready to roar after seven months of no cricket. Sustained runs from Rohit, in the beginning, would make him snowball his form in the midseason. So it requires a decent start for the hitman to do what we are expecting from him.
To sum up
These top five are the top order batters, which is an added plus for run making. No matter what the scenario is, they walk in earlier. So they have the largest chance to accumulate more runs, given their glorious skills and form.
