5 bowlers with more wickets than runs in their IPL careers 

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is getting ready to offer cricket fans their annual dose of cricketainment, amidst the pandemic which has kept sportsmen and sport lovers away. As it approaches, it is time for us to dive into a few intriguing numbers from the 12-year history of the most famous global T20 cricket league.

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IPL bowlers with more wickets taken than runs scored

One such statistic which catches the eye concerns those bowlers who have excelled in their trade of accounting for opposition batsmen, but have done so while being a total dunce with the bat. The number of wickets in their tally exceeds the total number of runs they have been able to amass across their IPL careers!

The following are the top five gentlemen who feature on this list.

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#1 Lasith Malinga

Malinga will nonchalantly walk into any all-time IPL XI

Slinga Malinga will undoubtedly go down as one of the most successful IPL players of all time, given the kind of impact he has had on the Mumbai Indians' performance over the years.

For most part of his decade-long career in the league, Malinga has instilled fear in opponent batsmen with his ability to produce toe crushing yorkers or the ever-deceptive slower balls that have made the best batsmen look like fools.

With a staggering 170 scalps to his name, the Sri Lankan great is not just the leading wicket-taker in the history of the league but also an bonafide T20 legend. However, he has not been able to create magic with the bat in hand, as he has only been able to aggregate 88 runs across his 122-match career that has spanned nine seasons.

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#2 Ashish Nehra

'Nehraji' remodelled his game to suit the shortest format of the sport

Former Indian left-arm pacer Ashish Nehra had a long career for a fast bowler and one of the major reasons he came back into international reckoning was his performances in the editions of the IPL. He featured in every season between 2008 and 2017 barring the 2011 season, which succeeded the ICC World Cup in which the Delhi pacer helped India win the silverware.

Even though the World Cup remained his last 50-over outing, he continued to represent India in the shortest version till 2017 on the back of successful IPL outings.

Across an 88-match IPL career that saw him donning five different franchise colours, Nehra picked up an impressive 104 wickets but his contribution with the bat was all of 41 runs, of which 22 came in a single innings in 2010.

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#3 Yuzvendra Chahal

Chahal could not replicate his bowling success with the bat

30-year-old Haryana leg spinner Chahal's craft has enabled him to deliver consistent IPL performances since his debut in 2013. On the back of these outings, he not only entered the Indian team but also made a name for himself as one of the best leg-spinners in the limited-overs formats at present.

A crowd favourite for his on and off-the-field antics, Chahal has been captain Virat Kohli's crisis man as he seldom disappoints, and that too bowling in the famed Chinnaswamy Stadium, which with its short boundaries and lush outfield is a spinner's nightmare.

While the former junior chess champion has troubled the batsmen with his guile and has accounted for 101 wickets in his 84 match IPL career, his performance with the bat is something Kohli would never bank on. Out of the meagre 21 runs he has amassed, 13 came in the 2017 season, which proved to be his best with the bat.

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#4 Sandeep Sharma

Sandeep can be proud of having dismissed Kohli the most times in the IPL

Punjab-born medium-pacer Sandeep Sharma rose to fame after his swing bowling at the 2012 ICC U-19 World Cup that helped India win the title. As a result, he was signed by the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) for the 2013 season of IPL.

Sandy, as he is fondly known, brags of one of the greatest batsmen in the modern era as his bunny, as he has dismissed Virat Kohli six times in their ten IPL meetings. To add to that, he holds the distinct record of accounting for the famous RCB trio of Chris Gayle, Kohli and AB de Villiers in the same match in what happened to be a match-winning performance.

An IPL regular since his debut in 2013, Sandeep has played in 79 matches across his two stints at KXIP and SRH, but has failed to take his runs tally for any season into double digits. All that he has managed with bat in hand are 32 runs, which is in stark contrast to the 95 wickets he has accounted for.

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#5 RP Singh

RP excelled in South African conditions

The wily left-arm pacer from Uttar Pradesh made a name for himself when he proved to be Dhoni's go-to man in the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup back in 2007, ending up as India's most successful bowler in the tournament. His success in the format meant that he was eyed by franchises in the IPL, and he went on to represent the Deccan Chargers in the first three editions of the league.

In fact, he emulated his success in the World Cup in the second edition, which like the World Cup, took place in South Africa. RP scalped 23 wickets, not only winning the Purple Cap but also proving to be a vital cog in Adam Gilchrist's team that went from being wooden spooners to champions in consecutive seasons.

However, the cricketer-turned-commentator could hardly make a difference with the bat. All he managed across seven seasons and stints with five franchises was a paltry 52 runs at 3.47 runs per dismissal, far less in number than the 90 wickets he accounted for.