The race for the coveted Purple Cap, awarded to the leading wicket-taker in the IPL, heated up after the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) versus Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR0 match in Chepauk on April 8. Chennai Super Kings' bowler Mustafizur Rahman grabbed the top spot with an impressive tally of nine wickets. Rahman bowled a superb spell, boasting a bowling figure of 2/22 to wrap up KKR's innings for just 137/9. Later, CSK chased down the target with seven wickets to spare.
Meanwhile, Rajasthan Royals' Yuzvendra Chahal, who previously held the lead, now sits at number two with eight wickets. The rest of the top five contenders include Khaleel Ahmed from Delhi Capitals, Mohit Sharma from Gujarat, and Gerald Coetzee from Mumbai.
Another young talent making waves in the IPL is Mayank Yadav from Lucknow Super Giants. The 21-year-old not only impressed with his bowling speed, clocking the fastest delivery of IPL 2024 at a blistering 156.7 kph against Royal Challengers Bangalore, but also secured a spot in the top wicket-takers' list, currently sitting at number six.
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Let's have a look at the leading wicket-takers in IPL 2024 after CSK vs KKR's clash:
No. | Player | M | Ins | Ovs | Runs | Wkts | BBI | Avg | Econ | SR | 4w/5w |
| 1 | Mustafizur Rahman | 4 | 4 | 16.0 | 128 | 9 | 29/4 | 14.22 | 8.00 | 10.66 | 1/0 |
| 2 | Yuzvendra Chahal | 4 | 4 | 14.0 | 89 | 8 | 3/11 | 11.12 | 6.35 | 10.50 | 0/0 |
| 3 | Khaleel Ahmed | 4 | 5 | 20.0 | 170 | 7 | 25/3 | 24.48 | 8.50 | 17.14 | 0/0 |
| 4 | Mohit Sharma | 4 | 5 | 19.0 | 165 | 7 | 21/2 | 23.57 | 8.68 | 16.28 | 0/0 |
| 5 | Gerald Coetzee | 4 | 4 | 14.3 | 154 | 7 | 34/4 | 22.0 | 10.62 | 12.42 | 1/0 |
The Purple Cap, awarded to the IPL's leading wicket-taker, is a highly sought-after glory. While most seasons crown a new champion, Bhuvneshwar Kumar stands alone as the only player to claim it consecutively (2016 & 2017). The record for most wickets in a single season is a thrilling tie, with both Harshal Patel (2021) and Dwayne Bravo (2013) finishing strong and securing the Purple Cap with an impressive 32 wickets each.
The inaugural IPL season in 2008 saw history made as Pakistan's Sohail Tanvir became the first Purple Cap winner with 22 wickets. The following year, RP Singh, a former Indian left-arm pacer, surpassed Tanvir by taking 23 wickets in South Africa. Pragyan Ojha, a former Indian spinner, joined the winners' circle in 2010 with 21 scalps. However, the trend soon shifted with overseas players starting to dominate the race for the coveted Purple Cap.
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