The 15th edition of the Indian Premier League, the greatest T20 cricket league in the world, gets underway on March 26 in Mumbai. Unlike the first 14 seasons in which eight teams participated, we will see 10 teams in action this year. More games and more players will mean the race to the orange and purple cap will get much more interesting. Since the majority of this year’s IPL games will be played at the Wankhede Stadium where the boundary line is small, we are likely to witness a lot of fours and sixes. Here’s listing five batters who could end the 2022 edition with the most number of runs.
KL Rahul – Punjab Kings
Former Punjab Kings captain KL Rahul has been among the standout batters in the IPL for three consecutive seasons. The opener ended the 2019 season as the second-highest run-scorer with 593 runs, and bettered the record in 2020, winning the orange cap after scoring a whopping 670 runs. The impressive run continued in the 2021 season, where KL scored 626 runs to end the tournament as the third-highest run-scorer. In between, he has been equally impressive in international cricket. The right-hander will be leading the Lucknow Super Giants this season, and will be looking to carry on from where he left last season.
Shreyas Iyer – Kolkata Knight Riders
The Kolkata Knight Riders spent Rs 12.25 crore in the recent auction to acquire Shreyas Iyer, which is testament to the batsman’s talent in T20 cricket. Iyer, who played for the Delhi Capitals until last year, has an impressive IPL record – an average of 31.66 in 87 matches. Although his overall strike rate of 123.95 has been rather ordinary, we have seen quite a few quickfire knocks by the Mumbai batter. Shreyas comes into IPL 2022 on the back of a Man of the Series award in the recent T20I series against Sri Lanka, in which he scored three unbeaten half-centuries on a trot. All of those three fifties came at an impressive strike rate.
Virat Kohli – Royal Challengers Bangalore
You simply cannot leave out Virat Kohli on the list of batters who could potentially win the orange cap. Despite the former India captain going through a lean patch in international cricket, you cannot write him off. Kohli has never won the orange cap, but he is the highest run-scorer in the history of the tournament with 6283 runs at an average of 37.39 and strike rate of 129.94. This includes five centuries – the most by any batter in the IPL. With the responsibility of RCB’s captaincy not on his shoulders any more, Kohli will be looking to play a lot more freely in IPL 2022.
Sanju Samson – Rajasthan Royals
Sanju Samson was the first player to be retained by the Rajasthan Royals ahead of the mega auctions. Soon later, he was retained as the captain too. Samson, who has played 13 T20 internationals for India, was the Royals’ highest run-scorer last season with 484 runs in 14 matches. A great striker of the ball, Samson has improved with each season he has played since 2013. The batter from Kerala has an average and strike rate of 29.21 and 134.20 in 121 matches, including three centuries.
Rohit Sharma – Mumbai Indians
The most successful captain in the IPL, Rohit Sharma is also the third-highest run-scorer in the tournament’s history. The India captain has amassed 5611 IPL runs at an average and strike rate of 31.17 and 130.39. Most of the matches this season will be played at the Wankhede Stadium, where the batter has been playing since his childhood days. Rohit will be looking to make the most of the ‘home game’ factor and lead Mumbai to yet another trophy.
