The group phase of IPL 2026 wrapped up on Sunday night, Rajasthan Royals pinching the last play-off berth with a nervy win over Mumbai Indians, while Delhi Capitals finally located some form against Kolkata Knight Riders. With 70 matches now in the book, the individual leaderboards have shifted again.
Purple Cap – bowlers’ table
Rajasthan’s decision to unleash Jofra Archer with the new ball paid off handsomely. The quick scissored through Mumbai for 3 for 17, removing Rohit Sharma and Naman Dhir in the powerplay before returning to pin Hardik Pandya. Coach Mark Boucher could hardly hide his delight: “an absolute nut,” he said of the yorker that flattened Rohit, crediting the spell as match-defining.
The haul propels Archer to third in the wicket charts on 21, nudging ahead of Anshul Kamboj, Rashid Khan and Eshan Malinga. Only Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Kagiso Rabada, both on 24, are now above him – and all three remain alive in the knock-outs. One decent evening next week could decide the cap.
Boucher sounded cautiously upbeat afterwards. “We’ve given ourselves a chance. Jofra’s rhythm is back, bits of rust are still there, but the ball’s coming out nicely,” he said, preferring not to tempt fate with any grand predictions.
Orange Cap – batters’ table
Earlier in the day Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s season ended with a whimper, Deepak Chahar pinning him lbw for four. That left the Sunrisers opener stuck on 583 runs and vulnerable to anyone lurking just behind.
Cue KL Rahul. Delhi, out of contention, had little to play for save personal pride; Rahul, though, clearly fancied a last word. His 60 from 30 balls – crisp, mostly orthodox, a couple of late scoops for variety – nudged him to 593 and fourth place overall. Ambati Rayudu, on commentary duty, was quick to note the significance. “Rahul deserves an IPL title,” Rayudu said, praising the Lucknow skipper’s year-on-year consistency even as trophies have stayed out of reach.
The current top three remain unchanged: B Sai Sudharsan (638), Shubman Gill (616) and Heinrich Klaasen (606). All three still have at least one innings left, so the cap is far from settled. Sooryavanshi and Rahul, their campaigns over, can only watch.
Quick numbers
• Best strike rates (min 150 balls): Glenn Phillips 196, Tristan Stubbs 190, Rahul Tripathi 184
• Meanest economy (min 20 overs): Mohammed Siraj 6.7, Axar Patel 6.8, Karthik Tyagi 7.0
• Most fifty-plus scores: Gill 6, Sudharsan 5, Klaasen 5
What next?
Play-offs start Tuesday – Eliminator first, then the Qualifiers. Bhuvneshwar, Rabada, Archer and Rashid are all within one good spell of the Purple Cap. Sudharsan leads the Orange chase but has Gill, Klaasen and maybe even someone from deeper down the list breathing uncomfortably close.
For now, though, Archer walks off with the match award and a grin; Rahul exits with the mild satisfaction of finishing above Sooryavanshi. Small wins, but in a league this long any win counts.
