IPL 2026 Purple Cap Race Heats Up as Bowlers Vie for Top Spot

New Delhi. Following Chennai Super Kings' victory over Mumbai Indians on Friday night at Chepauk Stadium in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, a thrilling competition has emerged in the list of highest wicket-takers, the 'Purple Cap'.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru's veteran bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar is at the top with 17 wickets, but Chennai's Anshul Kamboj has given him tough competition.

Kamboj equaled Bhuvneshwar by taking three wickets in the match against Mumbai. However, Bhuvneshwar still holds the Purple Cap based on a superior economy rate. Kamboj's economy is 8.49, while Bhuvneshwar's is only 7.54.

In the race for the Purple Cap, after Bhuvneshwar and Kamboj, Rajasthan Royals' Jofra Archer and Sunrisers Hyderabad's Ishan Malinga are following with 15 wickets each, while Gujarat Titans' Kagiso Rabada is in fifth place with 14 wickets.

This season, six other bowlers have already taken 10 or more wickets, indicating a very tough competition among the bowlers. Kamboj, who returned to the field after a long gap, made an excellent comeback against Mumbai, despite being wicketless in the previous match.

In the batting's Orange Cap competition, Delhi Capitals captain KL Rahul remains at the top with 433 runs. Sunrisers Hyderabad's Abhishek Sharma and Heinrich Klaasen are giving him tough competition with 425 and 414 runs respectively.

Similarly, Rajasthan Royals' Vaibhav Suryavanshi has also crossed the 400-run mark, keeping himself in excellent form. Although there has been no change in the top eight batsmen list, Chennai's Sanju Samson has moved up to ninth place despite a weak performance of 11 runs.

Impressive names like Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, B Sai Sudharsan, and Prabsimran Singh are among the top 10 batsmen.