Top Contenders to win the Orange Cap in IPL 2023
RR's Jos Buttler won the Orange Cap in IPL 2022 (Twitter)
The Indian Premier League is one of the largest and most prestigious sporting events in the world which is organised annually in India. The upcoming 16th edition of the tournament will see 10 franchises battling it out shoulder-to-shoulder against each other to claim the ultimate prize. Once the tournament proper kicks off, we will have thrills on our way, and in a format dominated by the batters, they will be the lead acts.
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As teams will be fighting for the coveted IPL trophy, the players will also battle out in order to clinch some individual accolades. One of the most prestigious awards will be given to the batter who ends up scoring the most runs in the cash-rich league. The “Orange Cap” comes with a cash price of INR 15 lakh. It is an award given to the batsman with the most runs in an Indian Premier League season ever since the inception of the tournament. Every batter who plays the IPL, dreams of winning this premium award.
Since the inception of the league, a lot of marquee batters have had the honor to take the Orange Cap with them at the end of the season. Shaun Marsh was the first one to win it, while the current holder of Orange Cap is Jos Buttler. Who will have the honor of winning the Orange Cap this year? In this listicle, we look at the top contenders who win the Orange Cap in the upcoming season.
5) KL Rahul
KL Rahul is top-contender for Orange Cap in IPL 2023 (Source: iplt20.com)
Inarguably, Rahul has been the most consistent batter in the IPL since the 2018 season. The Karnataka right-hander plundered runs at will coming in as the opener. He won the Orange Cap in the 2020 IPL season. The top-order batter recorded 670 runs in 14 appearances. Rahul also had 5 fifties and a single century under his belt. Rahul shouldered the burden of leading the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) batting along with his opening partner Quinton de Kock. The LSG skipper amassed 616 runs at an average of over 50. It's tough to match Rahul's consistency when it comes to the IPL. He might be struggling to score runs at the international level, but cometh the IPL, cometh Rahul.
4) Jos Buttler
Jos Buttler can win the orange cap in IPL 2023 (Source: Twitter)
In a record-breaking season, England's talisman Jos Buttler scored 863 runs in 17 games with a magnificent average of 57.53 at a strike rate close to 150, including four centuries and as many half-centuries for Rajasthan Royals (RR). His tally of 863 is the second-most by any batter in a single season after Virat Kohli's 973 in the 2016 season. The best thing about Buttler is being a senior member of the Royals camp, he understands his role in the team. The explosive RR opener plays the role of sheet anchor and tries to bat as long as he can with other batting around him. Heading to IPL 2023, the RR opener would like to continue from where he left off in the 2022 season and help his team win the IPL trophy as well. Notably, he is the only overseas player part of this elite list.
3) Suryakumar Yadav
Suryakumar Yadav will hold the key for MI in IPL 2023 (Source: Twitter)
Suryakumar Yadav had a horrible run leading up to the IPL 2023 in the recently concluded home series against Australia. However, Mumbai Indians (MI) fans won't be too concerned as the number 1 T20I batter is bound to get a lot of confidence when he returns to play his favorite format with the IPL. By his own lofty standards, Mumbai's most reliable batter didn't have a great IPL 2022, mustering 303 runs at an average of more than 43 and a strike rate of 145.67 after featuring 8 matches. Overall, his IPL career has been impressive, and he has proven to be an essential member of the MI squad. India's own 360° player, SKY's contributions with the bat and on the field have been vital to MI's success over the years. He's known for his exceptional batting and has the ability to light up back-to-back T20 matches as he did in 2020. Suryakumar will be a key player for the Mumbai Indians as the franchise looks to bounce back from a last-place finish last year and win their sixth title.
2) Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli will be a key cog in the RCB batting machinery in IPL 2023 (Source: Twitter/@RCBTweets)
A true icon of modern-day cricket, an IPL legend, and one of the best players to nourish the game, Virat Kohli makes the cut. Last year wasn't the best for IPL's highest run-getter, but post Asia Cup 2022, he has found his mojo. Kohli's return to prominence and the India national team has been well documented. Kohli, who was the captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2016, amassed 973 runs in 16 games (the most runs ever scored individually in a single season of the IPL). Big man for the big occasion. Kohli owned that season and notched up as many as four centuries during the tournament while also scoring 7 fifties. That was a dream season for Kohli and considering the standards that the batting maestro has set for himself, he will try to better his own tally in the upcoming season. A rejuvenated Kohli is as dangerous as any player in the world.
1) Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill
It will not be wrong to say that this year has been all about Shubman Gill. He has been scoring runs for fun. Irrespective of the conditions or opposition, Gill has shown that he's a high-quality batter and probably the next big thing in Indian Cricket. Considering that he opens the innings for Gujarat Titans (GT) the right-handed batter will have enough time in the middle and if he continues his breathtaking form into the IPL, he might be a front-runner to win the much-coveted Orange Cap and MVP Award. The 23-year-old cricketer garnered a lot of attention in the IPL 2022, courtesy of his splendid performance with the bat. Gill fired from all cylinders in the last year's IPL, scoring 483 runs in 16 innings this season at an average of 34.50 and a strike rate of 132.33 with the help of four fifties. He was instrumental in Gujarat's title win. This year the expectations will be more from him and he would love to live up to the expectations of the fans.
 "Vaibhav Tripathi")
