In Stats: Eleven Most Destructive Batsmen to Look Out For in IPL

The Quint takes a look at the eleven most destructive batsmen to look out for in the ninth edition of the IPL.

The Indian Premier League is set to begin on Saturday with Mumbai Indians taking on the Rising Pune Supergiants in Mumbai.

The T20 fever continues in India, after the end of one of the most entertaining World T20s ever. Cricket fans around the globe will hope for the IPL to be as entertaining as the World T20.

When one thinks about T20, the first thing that crosses his or her mind are the fours and sixes hit by the best batsmen in the world.

The Quint takes a look at the eleven most destructive batsmen to watch out for in the ninth edition of the IPL.

Aaron Finch

Until recently the top-ranked batsman in T20 Internationals, Aaron Finch is among the more-experienced batsmen in the Gujarat Lions ranks. The Australian has had his fair taste of IPL having been part of five different IPL sides so far; he represented the Rajasthan Royals in 2010, played for the Delhi Daredevils in 2011, sported the Pune Warriors India jersey in 2013, played for the Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2014 and most recently represented Mumbai Indians in 2015. He can be explosive, especially at the top of the order and hits a boundary once every five balls on an average.

AB de Villiers

Figure this: De Villiers’ strike rate while batting for RCB is 157.99 – more than any other player in the RCB line-up. Enough said, isn’t it? ‘360-degree batsman, ‘best finisher in the world’, ‘most dangerous batsmen in the world’, are some of the phrases used to describe the Superman from South Africa.

Brendon McCullum

Remember the 158 Brendon McCullum struck to announce the launch of the Indian Premier League. The New Zealander, retired from international cricket and now part of Gujarat Lions, established a new brand of batting; no matter what the situation of the match, the Kiwi wields the willow hard, will be aggressive at all times and takes the fight to the opposition. He was the Chennai Super Kings’ highest run-getter in IPL 2015 with an aggregate of 436 runs, scored at a strike-rate of 155.71!

Chris Gayle

‘World Boss’, as he is fondly referred to, Chris Gayle is perhaps the most destructive batsman in the T20 format. The Jamaican has been somewhat of a run-machine where the IPL is concerned; almost every season he has turned out for the Royal Challengers Bangalore, Gayle has lit up stadiums across the country.

David Warner

From the day he struck a 43-ball 89 on his T20 International debut for Australia, David Warner has established a reputation of being a dangerous batsman at the top of the innings. The left-hander – now captain of Sunrisers Hyderabad – is a fearless striker of the cricket ball and helped himself to a total of 562 runs in IPL 2015, enough to win him the Orange Cap for being the top run-getter in the season.

Glenn Maxwell

How dangerous can Glenn Maxwell be? Rewind the clock to IPL 2014 when he almost single-handedly took Kings XI Punjab to the Playoffs. The Australian scored 552 runs in that season at a whirlwind strike-rate of 187.75. Though he couldn’t repeat that performance in IPL 2015, KXIP fans will be hoping he can discover the form of 2014 yet again. The 27-year-old has struck the ball well so far in 2016; he has gone past 20 in seven of the 11 T20 innings and has scored his runs at a strike-rate of 147.31.

Jos Buttler

One of only four Englishmen to be picked to play in IPL 2016, Jos Buttler will be keen to make a mark if and when he gets an opportunity to take the field for Mumbai Indians. The 27-year-old was impressive in the recently concluded ICC World T20, scoring 191 runs at a strike-rate of 159.16. That he holds the record for the three fastest-centuries by an Englishmen in One-Day Internationals illustrates his abilities with the bat.

Kevin Pietersen

“An Englishman who now plays only in the Southern Hemisphere” – Alex Stewart, the former England wicketkeeper, best describes Kevin Pietersen, who will now turn out for Rising Pune Supergiants in IPL 2016.

A flamboyant and destructive batsman at his best, KP – the former England captain, after his difficult times with, in and around the England & Wales Cricket Board, now operates as a freelance cricketer playing in T20 leagues around the world.  Pietersen’s influence in T20 cricket can be judged from the fact that he was player of the tournament in England’s run to the title in the ICC World T20 in 2010.

In the last two years, he has scored 1460 runs in T20 cricket – second only to Chris Gayle’s aggregate. In the last six months, he has appeared in T20 leagues in South Africa, Australia and Dubai.

Shane Watson

Shane Watson, who recently announced his retirement from international cricket, will turn out for Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2016. Earlier this year against India, the Australian blasted his way to an unbeaten 124 – the second-highest score in T20 Internationals. The 34-year-old, who has also turned out for the Rajasthan Royals, is one of two players to have scored more than 2000 runs and taken more than 50 wickets in the Indian Premier League.

Suresh Raina

T20 cricket, and Indian Premier League in particular, is home territory for Suresh Raina. In IPL 2016, the 29-year-old will find himself in a new role – that of captain of Gujarat Lions. The left-hander played every single IPL match for his previous team – the Chennai Super Kings. The southpaw, who generally bats one drop, has been among the consistent performers in the IPL; he is the only player to have scored 400 runs or more in seven of the eight IPL seasons so far.

Virat Kohli

Top-ranked batsman in the ICC rankings for T20 Internationals, second-ranked batsmen in ICC rankings for ODIs, player of the tournament in the recently concluded ICC World T20 2016 and captain of ‘Team of the ICC World T20 2016’. Do we need to say more about Virat Kohli, the Royal Challengers Bangalore captain?

The 27-year-old appears to batting on a different plane altogether in the last year or so; he has displayed an amazing ability to soak in all the pressure, and much to the delight of the purists and old-timers, uses conventional strokes to score the bulk of his runs.