T20 is a format that is fickle and consistency is one thing that is tough to maintain. Form and momentum sways quite a bit in this shortest format. However, over the years, batsmen have found ways to be consistent and produce impactful performances regularly. IPL been one of the best T20 leagues around the world and there have been players who’ve been supremely consistent in this cash-rich league as well. There are as many as 15 players who have scored more than 3000 runs across 12 seasons and there are 10 players who have more than 4000 runs. Thus, here we look at the top 10 highest run-getters in the history of the IPL.
#1 Virat Kohli – 5412 runs
Virat Kohli is the only player in the history of the IPL to play for the same team for 12 seasons. There have been a few others who’ve stuck with the same franchise but none of them have played for as many as 12 seasons. It’s no surprise that the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper is at the top of the run-charts. Kohli has scored 5412 runs at an average of 37.84.
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He didn’t have the best of starts to his IPL career but his has evolved into a very consistent performer. In fact, in the last five seasons, Kohli has aggregated more than 450 runs four times. This includes the staggering 2016 season where he smashed a jaw-dropping 973 runs. The Delhi-born cricketer has scored five tons, four of which came in the 2016 edition. Overall, Kohli has registered 41 fifty-plus scores which is the second-best in the history of the league.
#2 Suresh Raina – 5368 runs
At one point, Suresh Raina used to be termed as ‘Mr IPL’. Raina has never won the Orange Cap nor has he been anywhere close to the leading run-getters every season. But it is his consistent performances year after year that sees him at the second place in this top run-getters list. In fact, he was even at the top a year back and he was also the first player in the history of the league to reach the 5000-run mark.
Out of 12 seasons, Raina has amassed more than 400 runs in nine out of the 12 seasons. The left-hander from Uttar Pradesh got a minimum of 400 runs in every season between 2008 and 2014. His performances have tapered off just a bit over the last few years. Yet, Raina holds on to the second spot and has scored 5368 runs which includes 38 half-centuries and one hundred.
#3 Rohit Sharma – 4898 runs
If you look at Rohit Sharma’s stats over the years, you’d see that he never had a breakout season. He never threatened the top run-getters or had a smashing season. However, he’s been pretty consistent every year. Only in one of the seasons, the Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper hasn’t reached the 300-run mark. Overall, he’s scored 4898 runs and has registered 36 fifties and one ton.
He had a very good time with the Deccan Chargers in the first three seasons where he made 1170 runs. However, the switch to MI in 2011 was a remarkable one. His batting numbers didn’t really change but it was the impact he had. Rohit’s elevation to the captaincy in 2013 changed fortunes for MI. Under the Mumbaikar, MI have won four titles and he has changed the landscape of the IPL and MI.
#4 David Warner – 4706 runs
David Warner has taken some rapid and giant strides in this list over the last few years. The Australian opener was decent with Delhi but there was just one season where he amassed more than 400 runs (2013). The seventh edition (2014) was the turning point for Warner. He moved to the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and things turned upside down.
He’s played five seasons for SRH (missed the 2018 season due to the ban) and he has aggregated more than 500 runs each season. In fact, he’s become a beast in the IPL and has won the Orange Cap thrice. For SRH, Warner has smashed 3271 runs at an average of 55.44 and a strike-rate of 146.88. Moreover, the New South Wales opener has scored 34 hundreds and two centuries for SRH. Overall, no other player has more fifties or fifty-plus scores in the IPL.
#5 Shikhar Dhawan – 4579 runs
There’s been a lot of criticism on how Shikhar Dhawan has played T20 cricket in international cricket. His strike-rate has been under the scanner quite a bit. However, he has been a pretty underrated player in the IPL. The left-handed opener has made 4578 runs from 162 matches which includes 37 fifties with a highest score of 97 not out.
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His strike-rate has fluctuated but he’s been regular in terms of scoring runs consistently. Over the last four seasons, Dhawan has made more than 450 runs every season. He played six seasons for SRH before he made the switch to the Delhi Capitals (DC) last season (2019). He got 521 runs and was one of the reasons why Delhi did well and reached the playoffs. Dhawan has scored 300+ runs in a season 10 times (out of 11 as he played just five games in 2009).
#6 Chris Gayle – 4484 runs
There are very few who’ve had the impact like Chris Gayle has had on the IPL. He played for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and had a decent time scoring 463 runs across two seasons. But it didn’t convince the franchises too much as he went unsold in the 2011 auction. It was only after the first few games in the 2011 season that Gayle got a call-up as an injury-replacement.
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He flew in to play for RCB after the first four games and had a big impact straightaway. In 2011 and 2012, he won the Orange Cap and even got 700+ runs in the 2013 season. His performances did dip but he amassed 3163 runs which came at a strike-rate of 152.73 and an average of 43.33 for RCB. In the last couple of years, the Universe Boss has been performing well for Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) as well. On the whole, he has 4484 runs in the IPL which puts him at the sixth spot in the leading run-getters list.
#7 MS Dhoni – 4432 runs
Mahendra Singh Dhoni could well be defined as the face of the IPL and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He has been a huge part of this cash-rich league and has contributed immensely in the success of the IPL as well. He defines CSK and the Chennai-based franchise seems a little incomplete without the former Indian skipper. His batting position hasn’t been fixed and he has floated around the batting order. Yet, he is seventh on the list of most runs in the history of the IPL.
Dhoni has made 4431 runs and has played a staggering 190 games, which is the second-most in the IPL. The CSK skipper has hit 209 sixes in the IPL which is the most by an Indian and the third-most overall. He has led CSK to three IPL titles as well and has been a consistent performer.
#8 Robin Uthappa – 4411 runs
Robin Uthappa’s performances may have dipped over the last couple of years. But he has been a pretty consistent player in the IPL irrespective of which team he’s played for. He scored 350+ runs for seven editions in a row (between 2012 and 2018) which included a stunning Orange Cap winning season in 2014 where he made 660 runs as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) went on to lift the title.
Uthappa had a decent first season for MI in 2008 but couldn’t maintain the same consistency for RCB in the following two years. However, he did well for Pune Warriors India (PWI) and for KKR. It was only towards the end of last season that he was dropped due to his poor run and inconsistent striking ability. Overall, he is eighth on list of leading run-getters in the IPL as he has scaled 4411 runs.
#9 AB de Villiers – 4395 runs
For the first three seasons, AB de Villiers was with Delhi and had a very good season in 2009. However, he wasn’t really in the spotlight. It was only when he joined the RCB side in 2011 and joined forces with superstars like Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli that he garnered the limelight. De Villiers went into another zone once he switched to RCB and he hasn’t looked back since.
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Barring the 2017 season, the South African star has scored at least 300 runs every year and has been a big part of the RCB set-up. Along with Kohli, de Villiers defines the RCB batting line-up. His overall IPL strike-rate is 151.24 and it has come at an average of 39.95 while amassing 4395 runs. Another good season could well see him climb this ladder and move higher in the most IPL runs list.
#10 Gautam Gambhir – 4217 runs
Gautam Gambhir is the only name in this list who is not playing cricket actively at the moment. He is retired from all forms of cricket in December 2018. He played 11 seasons of the IPL and got big scores regularly and when things started to fade away, he stepped away from the IPL in 2018 and eventually retired from all formats.
Gambhir had a good run with Delhi in the first three seasons but they didn’t retain him. It was KKR who outbid everyone to avail his services and it was one of the defining moves in the history of the IPL. Gambhir changed the way KKR played and the Shahrukh Khan-owned franchise won two titles under the Delhi left-hander. He was KKR’s captain for seven seasons and he made 3035 runs for them with 1182 runs coming for Delhi across four seasons including 2018. Gambhir finished with 4217 runs in the IPL and is 10th on the list of the leading run-getters.
