Ever since the Indian Premier League (IPL) started its journey in 2008, there has been an unspoken revolution in the style & strategies applied by the cricketers to improve their game. And why wouldn’t it be? The better the player, the higher the price they are paid at the annual auction where the owners bid to select the best affordable cricketers to represent their teams for the season. Let’s make the bidding a bit easier for the owners with the following list of IPL’s all-time top 10 best players.
| Sl. No. | Cricketer | Country | Current/ Last IPL Team | Achievement |
| 01 | Virat Kohli | India | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 7263 runs |
| 02 | Yuzvendra Chahal | India | Rajasthan Royals | 187 wickets |
| 03 | Dwayne Bravo | West Indies | Chennai Super Kings | 183 wickets |
| 04 | Shikhar Dhawan | India | Punjab Kings | 6617 runs |
| 05 | David Warner | Australia | Delhi Capitals | 6397 runs |
| 06 | Rohit Sharma | India | Mumbai Indians | 6211 runs |
| 07 | Piyush Chawla | India | Mumbai Indians | 179 wickets |
| 08 | Suresh Raina | India | Chennai Super Kings | 5528 runs |
| 09 | AB de Villiers | South Africa | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 5162 runs |
| 10 | MS Dhoni | India | Chennai Super Kings | 5082 runs, 180 dismissals |
IPL’s All-Time 10 Best Players
Virat Kohli: 7,263 Runs
A little trivia here- Virat Kohli happens to be the only player in IPL, playing for only one team since the beginning of his IPL career- Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)- and he has been playing in IPL since the very inception of the mega cricket event, 2008. Ironically, leadership doesn’t seem to be his forte for he didn’t manage to take the championship trophy home for RCB as a captain, despite taking the team to the final 3 times: 2009, 2011 & 2016. RCB was also the runners-up of Champions League Twenty20 in 2011.
But with the highest number of runs as an IPL batsman till date and with the highest number of ODI (50) as well as IPL (7) centuries and 50 IPL half-centuries, so far, only a fool would think twice before having him on the team. Virat is also the batsman to score the highest number of runs in a single season- 973 runs in 2016. He has hit 234 sixes and 643 fours in 237 matches with an average of 37.35 in his IPL career till now. His highest score in an IPL match is 113 runs. He also holds the record of 2nd highest career catches (106) in IPL.
Yuzvendra Chahal: 187 Wickets
After the batsman with the highest number of runs, naturally comes the bowler with the highest number of wickets in IPL’s history so far. He plays for the Rajasthan Royals (RR). In 145 matches his average is 21.69 with an economy rate of 7.67 and he has, so far, six 4W hauls in his IPL career.
Dwayne Bravo: 183 Wickets
Although Bravo retired from IPL in 2022 while he was playing for Chennai Super Kings (CSK), he is still the 2nd highest wicket taker of the tournament till date playing only 161 matches. But most importantly, he holds the record of taking the highest number of wickets in a single IPL season by picking up 32 wickets in 2013. He shares the record with Harshal Patel who achieved the feat in the 2021 season but Harshal is far behind him with 111 wickets in his IPL career till now.
Shikhar Dhawan: 6617 Runs
With an average of 35.39, 2 centuries and 50 half-centuries Shikhar ‘Gabbar’ Dhawan is the 2nd highest run scorer in the history of IPL till the 2023 season. He plays for the Punjab Kings (PBKS). He has hit 185 maximums and 750 boundaries in his IPL career. His highest score in an IPL match is 106*. This hard-hitter batsman is loved by the team owners for his capability of consistent run-scoring.
David Warner: 6397 Runs
In just 176 matches, the Australian opener David Warner has scored the 3rd highest number of runs in his IPL career till now since 2009. Playing for the Delhi Capitals (DC), he has performed astonishingly brilliantly with an average of 41.54, he has 4 centuries and 61 half-centuries and his highest score in an IPL match is 126 runs. The interesting fact here is that he is ahead of Virat Kohli in all of these spheres. He has hit 226 sixes and 646 fours in his IPL career till 2023.
Rohit Sharma: 6211 Runs
This list could not be completed without having the Indian captain and one of the most consistent & hard-hitter batsmen of the world, Rohit Sharma. He plays for the Mumbai Indians (MI). In the 243 matches he has played till date in IPL, his average is 29.58 and he has hit the 2nd highest number of sixes (257) in IPL’s history till date, right after Chris Gayle.
He has also hit 554 boundaries with 1 century and 42 half-centuries. His highest score in an IPL match is 109*. Unlike Kohli, Rohit has been one of the most successful IPL captains taking the championship trophy home 5 times: 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020. MI also won the Champions League Twenty20 in 2013 under Rohit’s commendable leadership.
Piyush Chawla: 179 Wickets
The 3rd highest wicket taker of IPL’s history till date, Piyush Chawla, plays for MI. He has played 181 matches in his IPL career and his average is 26.79 with an economy rate of 7.91. He has had two 4W hauls in IPL till 2023. He is a decent all-rounder and his highest score in an IPL match is 24*.
Suresh Raina: 5528 Runs
One of the most underrated batsmen, Suresh Raina, has been a consistent and one of the most successful players in IPL since 2008. In fact, for his outstanding performance he is known as ‘Mr IPL’. He played for CSK before retiring in 2022. In his IPL career total of 205 matches his average is 32.51 and his highest score in an IPL match is 100*. He has 1 century and 39 half-centuries with 203 maximums and 506 boundaries. He still holds the record of highest number of career catches (109) in IPL.
AB de Villiers: 5162 Runs
RCB’s star batsman and one of the finest cricketers of not only IPL, but of the world in general, AB de Villiers retired from IPL in 2021. Before that, this legendary batsman played 184 matches with an average of 39.70 with 3 centuries and 40 half-centuries. His highest score in an IPL match was 133*. He has hit 413 boundaries and he holds the record of hitting the 3rd highest number of sixes in IPL’s history (251) and also in an IPL match (12) till date.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni: 5082 Runs, 180 Dismissals
No matter who is scoring the runs or who is taking the wickets, without a brilliant leader like CSK’s MS Dhoni, no team can ever perform at its best; nevertheless, he holds the highest record, in IPL till date, in all 3 spheres of his duties as a phenomenal wicket-keeper: 180 dismissals, 138 catches and 42 stumpings. In 250 matches, from 2008-23, his average is 39.09 and he has 24 half-centuries. His highest score in an IPL match is 84*. He has hit 239 maximums and 349 boundaries in his IPL career till date.
‘Captain Cool’ MS Dhoni has also been a successful IPL captain. Under his leadership, CSK has raised the IPL Championship Trophy 5 times: 2010, 2011, 2018, 2021 and 2023. The team has also been the runners-up 5 times: 2008, 2012, 2013, 2015 & 2019. During the 2-year suspension of CSK from IPL, Dhoni played for the Rising Pune Supergiants (RPS) and the team became the runners-up in 2017. He has also taken CSK to the finals of Champions League Twenty20 and has won the trophy in 2010 & 2014.
Honorable Mention
Chris Gayle: 4965 Runs
Chris Gayle still holds the record of highest individual score in an IPL match, 175* off just 66 balls and 17 sixes which is the highest by a batsman in an IPL match till date & 13 fours. The record doesn’t stop just there. With his 175 runs, RCB reached the total team score of 263-5 which is also the all-time highest in IPL’s history till date. Whoever has watched that match can never forget how beautifully entertaining it was!
He holds the record of hitting 357 sixes in his IPL career which is still the highest for a batsman (the 2nd highest is 257 by Rohit Sharma). He has played only 142 matches in his entire IPL career with an average of 39.72. He scored 6 centuries, 31 half-centuries and hit 405 fours before going unsold in 2022. He has expressed to continue playing as well as winning in future.
IPL returns by the end of March 2024 with 10 teams. Numerous runs and records will be made, old records will be broken and new milestones will be touched. Some new players will join while some players will bid adios. And that’s how the show will go on!
