Last Updated on 3 years by Charbel Coorey
Cricket News: List of most wickets by a spinner in an IPL season | Most wickets by a spinner in a single IPL season
Rajasthan Royals (RR) might not have won the trophy but Yuzvendra Chahal secured the Purple Cap with his sublime dismissal of Hardik Pandya in the IPL 2022 Final at Ahmedabad.
The role of spinners was under the scanner during the advent of the T20 format. Many feared that they would be taken to cleaners by batsmen due to the ruthless demands of the modern game.
But the slower bowlers have consistently reinvented themselves to become an integral asset for their respective teams.
Even the finalists of IPL 2022 were equipped with incredible spinners like Chahal, Ravichandran Ashwin, Rashid Khan and R Sai Kishore.
These players were instrumental in their respective side’s terrific run to the summit clash of the tournament. Here, let us take a look at the most wickets taken by a spinner in a single IPL campaign.
Most wickets by a spinner in a single IPL season
27 – Yuzvendra Chahal, 2022
As mentioned earlier, Chahal was absolutely phenomenal in the recently-concluded season. The leg-spinner took 27 scalps in 16 encounters and he displayed a wide repertoire of skillsets.
Skipper Sanju Samson used him as an attacking option by often employing him in the death overs. Chahal might have been dismayed by not lifting the trophy eventually but should be very proud of the performances that he put throughout the season.
Also read: List of most centuries in a single IPL season
26 – Wanindu Hasaranga, 2022
The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) stared a gaping hole in their bowling unit as they released Chahal prior to this season. However, they went big on Wanindu Hasaranga in the auction and would be proud of the Sri Lankan leggie’s outings this year as well.
Hasaranga might have taken some time to adapt to the league but he peaked at the right time. He swiftly became Faf du Plessis’ go-to option in the middle-overs and the franchise would surely be holding on to him for a long time now.
26 – Imran Tahir, 2019
Despite taking an equal number of wickets in 2019, Imran Tahir is placed third in this list as he played an additional game (17) as compared to Hasaranga this year. Playing in the slow and spin-friendly tracks at Chepauk, Tahir wreaked havoc with his leg-spin for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in 2019. The South African took two four-wicket hauls and maintained a terrific economy rate of 6.69 despite always being tasked with bowling the tough overs.
24 – Sunil Narine, 2012
Today’s generation might not properly recollect the aura that Sunil Narine carried when he broke into the IPL scene first in 2012. Apparently, Gautam Gambhir had spotted Narine in a Champions League T20 (CLT20) encounter in 2011 and was hell-bent upon having him in the KKR side in 2012. Narine lived up to the hype by taking 24 wickets and steering Kolkata to their maiden IPL trophy that year.
23 – Yuzvendra Chahal, 2015
It is only fitting that this list begins and ends with the most successful spinner in the history of the IPL. Chahal had spent a lot of time in the side-lines for Mumbai Indians (MI) before making his move to RCB in 2014.
The leg-spinner gradually came onto his own at the franchise and had a defining campaign in 2015 in which he took 23 wickets in 15 matches. Chahal emerged as a genuine wicket-taking option whilst bowling in a batsman’s paradise like the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. It is safe to say that the journey that began back then is still set to peak in the coming years.
Also read: List of most runs in a single IPL season
