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An economical spell of bowling can turn any game of limited overs cricket. With that in mind, here are the best bowling figures in the IPL.
Best 10 Bowling Figures in IPL History
Who has the Best Bowling Figures in IPL?
Alzarri Joseph
The current record for the best bowling figures in IPL history is held by Alzarri Joseph. Playing for the Mumbai Indians against Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2019, the West Indian paceman took 6/12 in 3.4 overs.
Mumbai had posted a total of 136/7. Sunrisers started brightly enough, putting on 33 for the first wicket, until Joseph removed David Warner before ripping out the middle order.
Sohail Tanvir
Sohail Tanvir was brilliant in the first edition of the IPL in 2008. He finished as the leading wicket taker with 22 victims and six of those scalps came in one game. Playing for Rajasthan Royals against the Chennai Super Kings, the Pakistan left armer took 6/14 from a full four overs.
Those figures helped Tanvir’s Rajasthan team to a comfortable eight wicket win.
Adam Zampa
Australian leg spinner Adam Zampa is currently only the third man to claim six wickets in an innings at the IPL. Playing for Rising Pune Supergiants against Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2016, Zampa took 6/19 from his four overs.
The Aussie took six of the eight Sunrisers wickets to fall on that day, and he set up a narrow, two-wicket win for his side.
Anil Kumble
Legendary Indian leg spinner Anil Kumble has the most economical figures of anyone who took five wickets in the IPL. His figures of 5/5 came from 3.1 overs while playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Rajasthan Royals in the 2009 edition of the competition.
Kumble’s effort helped to dismiss the Royals for just 58 as they attempted to chase down RCB’s total of 133/8.
Jasprit Bumrah
One of India’s best death bowlers of all time, Jasprit Bumrah is rapidly climbing up the list of leading IPL wicket takers. Five of his victims came in just one match as his Mumbai Indians side faced the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2022.
These are currently the best figures in losing cause. Bumrah claimed 5/10 from four overs, but he couldn’t help his Mumbai side from slipping to a 52 run defeat.
Ishant Sharma
Ishant Sharma’s height helped him to get extra bounce from most surfaces and he could certainly be a formidable opponent in limited overs cricket. He slots in on this list with exceptional bowling figures of 5/12 which he returned for Deccan Chargers in a game against Kochi Tuskers Kerala back in 2011.
Ishant’s Deccan side posted 129/7 and that five wicket burst from just three overs helped dismiss Kochi for just 74.
Lasith Malinga
Sri Lanka’s paceman Lasith Malinga was the leading IPL wicket taker for much of his career. He’s since been overtaken at the top, but he remains in the Top Ten in terms of best innings figures.
Playing for the Mumbai Indians against the Delhi Daredevils in 2011, Malinga returned figures of 5/13 from three overs and four balls with one maiden. His efforts helped to dismiss Delhi for just 95 and Mumbai passed their target with two wickets down and 19 balls to spare.
Ankit Rajpoot
Next up is Ankit Rajpoot, whose medium pace claimed the impressive figures of 5/14, while playing for Kings XI Punjab against the Sunrisers Hyderabad at IPL 2018.
This is another game where a five-wicket haul wasn’t enough to win the match. Rajpoot helped to restrict Sunrisers to 132/6 in their 20 overs, but KXIP could only make 119 in return.
Andre Russell
The man they call Dre Russ is known for his power hitting in the death overs, but he can also provide useful wicket taking deliveries. Playing for Kolkata Knight Riders against Mumbai Indians in 2021, Russell returned figures of 5/15.
The remarkable thing about this performance is that all five of those wickets fell in just two overs. It helped to dismiss Mumbai for 152 but KKR fell short of their target at 142/7.
Ravindra Jadeja
Left arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja has been an important all round cricketer for Chennai Super Kings across many seasons. His best IPL return with the ball came in 2016 when he returned figures of 5/16 against the Deccan Chargers.
Jadeja bowled his full allocation of four overs as Deccan were dismissed for just 119, losing the match by 74 runs.
Conclusion
These records are correct up to the end of the 15th IPL in 2022. There are some remarkable figures here, but they are all at risk from the exceptional bowlers who appear from 2023 onwards.
Seven wickets in a game is the next big target. This has only been done once, by Leicestershire’s Colin Ackerman, in the entire history of T20 cricket. As new seasons approach, will this list be under threat, or will the men at the top maintain their positions?
