Over the years, bowling has gained a lot more importance in T20 cricket than the early years. And the recruitment of players from the Indian Premier League (IPL) auctions is a testament to that fact. In the early years of the IPL, the batsmen used to fetch the big bucks and all the limelight. However, over the years, the bowlers have proved their worth too. The batsman still grab attention, but the bowlers aren’t too far behind.
In the last few years, star bowlers and specialist T20 bowlers have been paid heavily as well. Be it Tymal Mills in 2017 or the Australian pace bowlers in the last three years or even a few mystery spinners like Varun Chakravarthy, bowlers have been among the top expensive buys. That is because of how they have performed in the last few editions of the tournament. Here, we take a look at the five highest wicket-takers from the last three IPL seasons.
#1 Jasprit Bumrah – 56 wickets
It’s no surprise to see Jasprit Bumrah at the top of the wicket charts in this list of highest wicket-takers in the last three seasons. It was in 2013 that he made his IPL debut but played just two games. 2014 was a bad season for him as he could take just five wickets from 11 games which led to him featuring in just four games in 2015.
But once he made his debut for India in 2016, he became MI’s premier bowler. Ever since he became a regular in the Mumbai Indians (MI) XI, he’s turned into a beast. Since 2016, he’s taken at least 15 wickets every season and his wickets tally in the last three seasons read – 20, 17 and 19 respectively. His economy rate of 6.98 is excellent as well. Moreover, Bumrah largely bowls the difficult overs – in the powerplay and at the death. Hence, he’s had quite a big impact.
#2 Rashid Khan – 55 wickets
Again, it hardly comes as a surprise to see Rashid Khan in the top wicket-takers list. In the last three years, he’s spun a web around teams all over the world, including the IPL. He’s been a great addition to the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) side. The Afghan superstar was picked in the 2017 season and he hasn’t looked back since. He’s been among the best bowlers in the last three years.
Rashid has taken 55 wickets across the last three seasons and has been the chief wicket-taker for SRH. The young leg-spinner has the ability to bowl at any stage of the game and have a similar impact. Batsmen have started to play him out but he still continues to pick wickets. He’s taken 17 or more wickets every season that he’s played and hence, he is second on the list of most IPL wickets in the last three seasons.
#3 Imran Tahir – 50 wickets
Imran Tahir has been very good in the IPL but there’s barely anyone that talks about him. Every time the South African leg-spinner gets a decent run in an IPL season, he tends to do well. In fact, he is around the leading wicket-takers. Take 2015, 2017 or 2019, in each of these years, he’s played more than 10 games and he’s produced excellent returns.
Since 2017, Tahir has 50 wickets which have come at a strike-rate of 15.84 and average of 19.76, both of which are among the best in this period. In 2017, he was with Rising Pune Supergiant where he took 18 wickets from 12 games before playing just six games in 2018. In 2019, Tahir won the Purple Cap as he donned the role of CSK’s premier spinner and picked up 26 wickets.
#4 Bhuvneshwar Kumar – 48 wickets
It is the IPL that has had a big influence on Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s career. He burst on to the scene predominantly as a swing bowler who used to often bowl at least three overs with the new ball. However, things have changed and he’s evolved into a much better bowler. The pacer from Meerut has developed quite a few variations, has added an extra yard or two of pace and even has a good yorker.
All that has come after the switch to SRH in 2014. He has been their premier fast bowler for a few years now. He won the Purple Cap in back to back seasons (2016 and 2017). In the last three editions, Bhuvneshwar has taken 48 wickets. These have largely come from the 2017 season where he took 26 wickets. Over the last couple of seasons, he’s blown hot and cold with a few injuries and fitness issues.
#5 Umesh Yadav and Jaydev Unadkat – 45 wickets
Umesh Yadav has had a constant up and down time in the IPL. If one or two seasons sees a high, the following one drops to a mediocre level. The last three seasons haven’t been any different. He was very good in 2017 and 2018 before crashing down in 2019. In 2017, Yadav was with KKR where he took 17 wickets from 14 games. In 2018, RCB bought him and he was their best bowler as he picked 20 wickets and his economy was 7.86 as well, which is one of his best in an IPL season. However, in 2019, he was once again expensive and could take just eight wickets. But, a couple of good seasons saw him rise in this list to 45 wickets.
Jaydev Unadkat is tied with Yadav at 45 wickets. For the left-arm pacer from Saurashtra, it’s large on the back of the 2017 season. Playing for RPS, Unadkat took 24 wickets from 12 games and had fantastic numbers. But in 2018 and 2019, there was a considerable dip. He was expensive and couldn’t take wickets as frequently and could pick just 21 wickets from 26 games across the last two seasons.
