Big totals and breakout rookies, and Virat Kohli stacking up the runs… some themes are inevitable every IPL season. But there have also been a few surprises and some unexpected misses in IPL 2026. Here’s a mid-season snapshot.
The scrap for the Orange Cap
Has the Orange Cap ever had to change heads this often?
There’s still no clear frontrunner 34 games into the season. The list is traditionally dominated by accumulators who build season-long consistency, but this year the race has been disrupted by high-impact T20 hitters. Two-time Orange Cap winner Kohli unsurprisingly leads the pack at the moment, while the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal have all had their turns at the top. Sanju Samson too is climbing swiftly, powered by his two centuries.
The speed-scoring stars
There’s little suspense here. Priyansh Arya, Sooryavanshi and Abhishek have set the benchmark for scoring rates this season, striking at 248.23, 220.86 and 215.33 respectively. Their bam-bam approach has been central to their teams’ success, with Punjab Kings (PBKS), Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) placed first, third and fourth respectively on the table as of now.
Abhishek also leads the six-hitting charts with 27, followed by Rajat Patidar (23), while Arya and Sooryavanshi have 20 each.
The Purple Cap race
This leaderboard is also closely contested, but the surprise is that no really big names are in the top three.
Fast bowlers have largely dominated, while Ravi Bishnoi and Harsh Dubey feature as the only spinners in the top ten.
Anshul Kamboj leads with 14 wickets, excelling at the death, while Prince Yadav follows close behind with 13, having impressed across phases, and Eshan Malinga is third with 12, joint with last season’s Purple Cap winner Prasidh Krishna.
The over(s) of the tournament
For a change, it’s not a batter tearing into a bowler.
Considerable effort has gone into decoding how to contain Sooryavanshi, the 15-year old wunderkind, who has taken on even Jasprit Bumrah without hesitation.
The over to remember, though, came from uncapped Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) left-arm seamer Mohsin Khan. Sticking to hard lengths and extracting just enough movement off the surface, he built pressure ball by ball in the fourth over, and Sooryavanshi played out five dots in a row. Forced into a release shot, he miscued a swipe across the line, only for Digvesh Rathi to run back from extra cover and complete a composed catch.
Mohsin may have featured in only three matches, but he has already left a mark, boasting the second-best economy rate (6.80) among bowlers (minimum of 50 balls).
In an era where no total feels safe, Tushar Deshpande delivered a standout final over for RR, defending 10 against Gujarat Titans (GT). With Rashid Khan at the crease, Deshpande conceded just four runs and picked up a crucial wicket to seal the contest.
Most impressive rookies
As in seasons past, the league has once again unearthed a fresh batch of names that fuel the imagination, and add to the conversation around India’s ever-growing bench strength.
Mukul Choudhary became an overnight hero for LSG with an unbeaten 54 that stunned Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in a thrilling chase, an innings that has stood out even in a season that has already produced six centuries.
SRH, meanwhile, have unearthed a pace duo for the future, one hopes, in Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain, who ripped through RR’s batting to leave them reeling at 9 for 5.
SRH’s spin department has also gained depth with wristspinner Shivang Kumar emerging as another find.
For RR, Brijesh Sharma played a key hand in defending 160 in a tight contest. And then there is Ashok Sharma, who after two seasons on the sidelines with KKR and RR, has quietly impressed for GT, with six wickets in as many games and some searing pace.
The big surprise
Fresh off helping India lift the T20 World Cup, Jasprit Bumrah was expected to be MI’s go-to solution whenever things drifted with the ball. But Bumrah has not been Bumrahesque this season. He went wicketless for five matches straight, and sent down a spell of over 10 runs an over against PBKS, which is a rare dip by his standards. The drought ended in trademark fashion with a wicket off the very first ball against GT, followed by one more against CSK.
How have the big-money buys fared?
In the IPL, big-ticket buys have always been a question mark of sorts, and that’s continued this season.
Cameron Green, picked up by KKR for INR 25.20 crore – the most expensive overseas signing in IPL history – is yet to find rhythm with the bat, with 162 runs in seven innings, with a bulk of those coming in a loss against GT. His bowling has been limited to just three matches due to workload management, and he’s taken one wicket.
Sri Lanka fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana, the second-biggest buy at INR 18 crore, joined KKR late after receiving the all-clear from SLC but is yet to play a game.
The uncapped CSK duo of Kartik Sharma and Prashant Veer, bought for INR 14.20 crore each, have had limited opportunities – four and two games respectively – without much impact.
Liam Livingstone, signed by SRH for INR 13 crore, has also made just two appearances so far.
New overseas faces make a splash
While Indian players have largely dominated the narrative, a few overseas newcomers have made their presence felt too.
None more than Australian allrounder (though he has been playing as a batter) Cooper Connolly has slotted seamlessly into PBKS’ batting order, highlighted by a fluent 87 against LSG in New Chandigarh.
With the ball, Nandre Burger for RR and Jacob Duffy for RCB have been effective, particularly in the powerplay overs.
Best catch (ever)?
PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer produced a moment of brilliance against MI that even left the opposition in awe.
Fielding at long-on, he sprinted across and launched himself full stretch, catching the ball mid-air with his left hand, transferring it to his right as he crossed the boundary rope, and then managing a sharp relay to Xavier Bartlett before landing. That dismissal of Hardik Pandya left the Wankhede crowd momentarily stunned.
What have the IPL OGs been up to?
Kohli has been doing Kohli things, as usual. But Rohit Sharma has had a more stop-start season, hampered by a hamstring issue that has kept him out of a few games after an explosive start.
As for MS Dhoni, appearances have largely been confined to the nets, with the will-he-won’t-he question lingering at every toss CSK walk out for. At 44 and managing a calf concern, his season has so far been defined by anticipation and he’s kept the Chepauk crowd waiting.
