Top 3 IPL performers So Far 

The Indian Premier League hit the ground running and then some, with the first cluster of matches seeing big maximums scored, wickets sent tumbling, favourites beaten and underdogs left celebrating. 

The IPL has always promised top quality T20 action, and it has not disappointed this year, with the best players in the shortest format coming together to show why their teams spent the money to bring them in. 

With most teams having played five matches at the time of writing, now feels like the ideal time to highlight some of the top performers in the competition so far, and why they have been so instrumental to their teams at this early stage. 

Venkatesh Iyer

What a season it is proving to be for Kolkata Knight Riders’ Venkatesh Iyer. At the time of writing, Iyer holds the Purple Cap with 234 runs from five innings, meaning he sits above legends of the game like Shikhar Dhawan, David Warner, Virat Kohli and Jos Buttler. 

Things are still in their infancy in the 2023 IPL, but the season has gone on for long enough to see the great separating themselves from the good, and Iyer is throwing his hat in the ring to be seen as among the former. 

KKR have not been overly impressive in recent years, ending in seventh in 2022, four points short of the playoff places. This year, KKR are right in the mix for a top-four spot, and the exploits of Iyer could prove to be the difference between a berth in the knockout stages and having to watch on from home. 

The 28-year-old not only boasts a strong average of 46.80, but also a brilliant strike rate of 170.80. This means that Iyer is not only scoring consistently, but he is doing it quickly. With so little time between the first and last ball of the innings, having players that can smash runs is vital, and Iyer has managed to knock an impressive 19 4’s and 15 6’s in the little time he has spent in the middle. If KKR do well this season, expect to see Iyer around the top of the run scoring standing. 

Shikhar Dhawan 

Shikhar Dhawan just scores runs and is among the favourites with betting site BC.game to be the IPL’s top runscorer. The Punjab Kings have been enjoying a good start to the new campaign, and they look like they have a decent shot at finishing in the top-four this year. Of course, it is still very early in the year, but with Dhawan leading from the front, anything is possible. 

Dhawan has only played in four matches, but he is just one run short of snaring the Purple Cap at the time of writing with 233 runs scored. Dhawan currently averages a ridiculous 116.50 with a top score of 99 not out. His strike rate is also impressive, standing at 146.54.

Dhawan missed out on PBKS match with Lucknow Super Giants due to injury, but the hope is that he will be back soon, and the side will be desperate to see him return to add to their firepower. 

While one player does not usually prop up a team with their runs, Dhawan has been scoring so freely that it feels as though he will get a score in every single game he plays. PBKS and the neutral fans will all hope that Dhawan is back as soon as possible, with the Indian star lightning up the IPL so far. 

Mark Wood

While the spinning tops in India has seen spin bowlers like Yuzvendra Chahal and Rashid Khan dominate with the ball in hand, one man, in particular, has been able to cut any notion that spinners would be the only dangerous bowling type this year. 

Mark Wood has proved to be an astute purchase by the Lucknow Super Giants, with his 11 wickets in four matches at the time of writing seeing the English quick give the opposition difficulties in all his outings so far. 

With best bowling figures of 5/14 so far, Wood’s lightning-fast bowling is proving lethal at the start, middle and end of the innings for LSG. He has conceded just 130 runs in his four matches so far at an economy rate of just 8.12. This is made all the more impressive when taking into account that quick bowlers allow batsmen to use the pace of the delivery to clear the boundary. 

This is therefore testament to how intelligently Wood has bowled. Whether Wood is looking for wickets or simply trying to take the momentum away from the opposition, the English World Cup winner is proving to be a star that is driving LSG’s title challenge. 

Wood’s own body could prove to be his own worst enemy as he has had his injury problems in the past, but if he and LSG can manage his workload properly, then Wood could prove to be the express train that takes his side to the playoff stages.