Bhuvneshwar Kumar owns most powerplay wickets in IPL history: Stats
What's the story
The 19th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is just around the corner. The gala T20 tournament, which gets underway on March 28, has seen many players showcase their skills and make their mark. One of them is veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has particularly been brilliant with the new ball. In fact, he owns the most powerplay wickets in the league's history. Here are his stats.
Powerplay
79 wickets in the powerplay
As many as 79 of Bhuvneshwar's IPL wickets have come in the powerplay across 187 innings (first six overs), as per ESPNcricinfo. Trent Boult (72) is the only other bowler with 70-plus wickets in this phase. Bhuvneshwar, who will represent Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the upcoming season, averages 31.56 in the powerplay. 1,294 of his 2,316 balls in this regard have been dots.
ER
Best economy in this phase
Bhuvneshwar's powerplay economy rate of 6.46 is the best among bowlers with at least 50 wickets in this phase. Zaheer Khan (6.74) and Sandeep Sharma (6.97) are the only other players on this list with sub-seven economy rates. Meanwhile, 29 of Bhuvneshwar's IPL wickets have come in the opening overs of an innings. He is only second to Boult (33) on this list. No other bowler has even 17 scalps in the first over of an innings.
Career
Second-most wickets in IPL
With 198 wickets across 190 matches at an average of 27.33, Bhuvneshwar is the second-highest wicket-taker in IPL history. The veteran is only behind leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who leads the tally with 221 wickets. Bhuvneshwar's economy rate is 7.69 with two fifers and as many four-wicket hauls to his name. He is also Sunrisers Hyderabad's all-time leading wicket-taker with a whopping tally of 157 wickets.