Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have named Indian batter Rajat Patidar as their new captain for the IPL 2025 season. Patidar, who was retained by the franchise, has played for the red and gold for the last three seasons. 

Although there were rumors of Virat Kohli being the captain of the franchise after they did not retain their former captain Faf du Plessis, who led them from 2022 to 2024. 

Patidar led Madhya Pradesh in SMAT and VHT 2024-25

Patidar, who as one of the three players retained by RCB for IPL 2025, has scored 799 runs in 28 matches at a strike rate of 158.85 since joining the team in 2021. The 31-year-old batter led his state team Madhya Pradesh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy this season.

During his stint as a full-time captain, Rajat Patidar scored 428 runs in nine innings at an average of 61.14 and strike rate of 186.08 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024-25. 

He was the second highest run-getter of the tournament as well. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25 Patidar scored 226 runs at an average of 56.50 and strike rate of 107.10.

𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐊𝐨𝐡𝐥𝐢 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐬! 💌

“Myself and the other team members will be right behind you, Rajat”: Virat Kohli

“The way you have grown in this franchise and the way you have performed, you’ve made a place in the hearts of all RCB fans. This is very well deserved.”… pic.twitter.com/dgjDLm8ZCN

— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) February 13, 2025

Patidar will be joining an elite group of players like Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, Virat Kohli, Kevin Pietersen, Shane Watson, Daniel Vettori and Faf du Plessis who have led the franchise in Indian Premier League so far.

Rajat has the simplicity, cares about the people around him, we have closely see how he led Madhya Pradesh, we really liked it," said Andy Flower, the head Coach of RCB.

With the news of Patidar being named the captain of RCB for IPL, only KKR and Delhi Capitals are left to announce their leader for the upcoming season, which will start on March 21.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a tournament where batsmen dominate more. But, in the history of the cash-rich league, there have been many bowlers who fool the batsmen with their clever bowling and deprive them of scoring runs by bowling dot balls.

Fast cricket is being seen in every season of IPL, where batsmen hit a lot of fours and sixes. On the other hand, bowlers seem helpless most of the time. To get out of this situation, you need to have bowlers who can control the run flow of the opposition team by bowling dot balls.

Also Read: IPL facts: Every player to make IPL debut before turning 18

In this article, we will be discussing about the top 10 bowlers with most dot balls bowled in IPL history.

Most Dot Balls Bowled in IPL

10. Amit Mishra | 1191

Amit Mishra has been among the top wicket-takers in the IPL. He is also the only bowler to take three hat-tricks in IPL history.

The experienced leg spinner has outfoxed batters with his flighted deliveries and leg breaks. Mishra was in his prime in the initial seasons of the league, taking heaps of wickets. Over the years, Mishra has bowled 1191 dot balls in 162 games while picking up 174 wickets. 

9. Umesh Yadav | 1203

Umesh Yadav has sent down 1203 dot balls in his IPL career. The right-arm fast bowler grabbed everyone’s attention with his quick pace. He then showcased his ability in the IPL, making his debut for Delhi in 2010. Yadav can move the ball in and out while hitting above 135 kmph consistently.

Thus far, the Vidarbha bowler has represented four teams and took 144 wickets in 148 matches.

8. Harbhajan Singh | 1268

Harbhajan Singh delivered 1268 dot balls in his 163-match IPL career. The former off-spinner was a crucial member of Mumbai Indians (MI) for 10 seasons between 2008 and 2017. He played a major role in Mumbai winning the league three times, especially in 2013, when he racked up 24 wickets. 

Harbhajan then moved to Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), playing his last game in 2021. Harbhajan got the better of batters with his varying length and pace while using his off-spin tricks. He took 150 wickets in 160 appearances at an economy rate of 7.08.

7. Yuzvendra Chahal | 1272

Yuzvendra Chahal is the most successful bowler in IPL history, sitting at the top of the wicket chart. The leg spinner has bagged 214 wickets in 168 matches while giving away 7.90 runs per over. On top of that, Chahal has delivered 1272 dot balls in the league. 

What makes his achievement special is he bowled most of his overs at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, where batters find it easy to score runs. Despite that, the leggie put up a break on run scoring, which is evident from his numbers.

6. Ravindra Jadeja | 1273

One of the best all-rounders, Ravindra Jadeja has kept batters calm with his accurate bowling. The elite left-arm spinner bowls wicket-to-wicket, not giving much room to batters to score runs.

This has resulted in him bowling 1273 dot deliveries in 219 innings. Jadeja also boasts 165 wickets at an economy of 7.65 while representing four teams.

Also Read: IPL Facts: Best Economy in IPL Since 2024

5. Jasprit Bumrah | 1301

Jasprit Bumrah’s rise in world cricket is phenomenal. The right-arm pacer came to the IPL in 2013 and turned everyone’s heads around with his unorthodox slingy action. Thanks to his exploits in the league, Bumrah soon entered the Indian team, emerging as one of the greatest fast bowlers from the country. 

Mumbai Indians scouts unearthed the rookie talent, who has been playing for them ever since. Bumrah’s awkward release point makes it hard for batters to play him, helping him put a lid on run scoring. Thus far, he has fired down the fifth-most dot balls, with 1301 dots in 137 innings while adding 169 wickets at an economy rate of 7.30.

4. Piyush Chawla | 1337

One of the most successful bowlers in IPL history, India's dangerous leg-spinner Piyush Chawla has bowled 1337 dot balls in the tournament. He has managed to secure the fourth position in this list.

Additionally, with an impressive economy rate of 7.96 and an excellent bowling average of 26.6, Chawla holds the record for taking the second-highest number of wickets (192) in the history of the tournament.

3. Ravichandran Ashwin | 1606

India's experienced off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is third on this list with 1606 dot balls in 215 IPL innings. His economy in the league is impressive at 7.19 and he has also taken 4 wickets once.

Ashwin captained the Punjab Kings franchise for two seasons and played for Delhi Capitals in the 2020 and 2021 seasons and is currently playing for Chennai Super Kings. He has taken 185 wickets in an average of 30.23.

2. Sunil Narine | 1651

West Indies mystery spinner Sunil Narine made his IPL debut in 2012. Since then, this star all-rounder has been an important player for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Batters often find it hard to navigate his mystery spin, resulting in fewer runs and more wickets.

In the history of IPL, Narine has bowled 1651 dot balls and he is second on this list. Narine has taken a total of 187 wickets in 181 IPL innings.

Also Read: IPL Facts: Lowest Total Defended in IPL

1. Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 1736

India's experienced right-arm fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar comes first in the list of most dot balls bowled in IPL history. Bhuvi, who has the ability to swing the new ball both ways, has bowled 1736 dot balls in the cash-rich league. 

Bhuvi started playing in the IPL in 2011 with Pune Warriors before moving to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in 2014. Since then, he has shown his incredible control over the ball, often putting a break on the run flow of the batting sides. He will now represent Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the 2025 season.

The Indian fast bowler has taken 189 wickets in 183 innings at an average of 27.14 and an economy of 7.57.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the Central Contract for the 2025-26 season on Monday, 21st April 2025. 7 new players were added to the contract, while players like Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan returned to the list after missing out last time.

Last year, Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were left out of the BCCI central contract after opting out of the domestic games for their respective state teams. BCCI's focus on domestic cricket left them out of the central contract despite being part of the Indian team set up a few months ago.

But, this time, both the Indian batters were added to the contract after Iyer won everything in the domestic cricket last season, along with lifting the IPL 2024 with Kolkata Knight Riders. Ishan Kishan also played through the entire domestic season and has been rewarded with the contract too. 

Read Also | "Mere Sath Kyun?.:" Ishan Kishan breaks silence on Team India exit and Central Contract termination

Talking points from the BCCI Central Contract 2025

Rohit and Kohli stay in Grade A+ 

Both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli remained in the Grade A+ category despite retiring from the T20I format. Rohit and Virat had announced their retirement from the shortest format of the game after lifting the T20 World Cup 2024 in the West Indies. 

Ravindra Jadeja is another name who has been listed in the A+ category despite retiring from the T20Is after the World Cup victory.

Bumrah is the only all-format player in A+

With Rohit, Kohli and Jadeja retiring from the shortest format of the game, Jasprit Bumrah remains the only all-format player to be in the A+ category of the BCC Central Contract 2025.

Pant is promoted to the Grade A category

Rishabh Pant received a promotion to the A category after being in the B category last year. Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya and Mohammed Shami are the other names in the A category, who were already there in last year's contract. 

Ravi Ashwin has been left out of the contract since he retired from international cricket.

Iyer listed in grade B; Kishan in grade C

Shreyas Iyer, who was left out of the contract last year, has been included in the Grade B, while Ishan Kishan has been listed in the Grade C. 

Suryakumar Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel and Yashasvi Jaiswal are the other names in Grade B, who were there last time as well. 

New 7 names in Grade C

7 new players have been added to the BCCI Central Contract 2025. All of these players found themselves in Grade C. 

Dhruv Jurel, Sarafraz Khan, Nitish Reddy, Abhishek Sharma, Varun Chakaravarthy, Harshit Rana, and Akash Deep are the players who received the contract for their performances in the last season. 

Not to be confused, Akash Deep earlier had a fast bowling contract and this year received the central contract after doing well in the Test format. 

Shardul Thakur, Jitesh Sharma, KS Bharath, Avesh Khan, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Umran Malik, Yash Dayal and Vidwath Kaverappa have been left out of the contract this year.

Vijaykumar Vyshak, Umran Malik, Yash Dayal and Vidwath Kaverappa were all part of the fast bowling contract last season. 

BCCI Central Contract 2025

BCCI announces annual player retainership 2024-25 - Team India (Senior Men) 💙🤝#Bcci #IndianCricket #Viratkohli #RohitSharma #jaspritbumrah #Shreyasiyer #KlRahul #HardikPandya #Ipl2025 pic.twitter.com/LSmlg06QOS

— Sportz Point (@sportz_point) April 21, 2025

Vaibhav Suryavanshi just broke the record for being the youngest ever IPL debutant at the age of 14 years and 23 days. The young left-handed batter created the record when he came as an impact player for the Rajasthan Royals against Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2025. With this, he became the 10th player to make an IPL debut before turning 18. 

Who was the first player to make an IPL debut before turning 18?

Pradeep Sangwan, at the age of 17 years, 179 days, became the first ever player in IPL to make a debut before turning 18. The left-arm pacer was fresh from the U-19 World Cup victory under Virat Kohli.

Sangwan made his IPL debut for Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) in the inaugural season in 2008. 

Who is the youngest player ever in IPL history?

Vaibhav Suryavanshi is now the youngest player ever in IPL history. He made his debut for Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2025 against Lucknow Super Giants at the age of 14 years and 23 days old. He broke the record of Prayas Ray Barman, who held the record for becoming the youngest IPL debutant for a long time.

Read Also | Exclusive | "He has the intent to play at the highest level," Bihar head coach on Vaibhav Suryavanshi

Players to make IPL debut before turning 18

Till now, 10 players have made their IPL debut before turning 18. Here are all the teenage sensations who made their IPL debut even before earning their voter card. Interestingly, all the players on this list are Indian.

1. Pradeep Sangwan (17 years, 179 days, DD (now DC), 2008)

The left-arm pacer from Delhi was the first player ever in Indian Premier League history to make his debut before turning 18. After a sensational ICC Men's U-19 World Cup 2008, Delhi Daredevils gave him a contract. Sangwan made his debut at the age of 17 years, 179 days and has played 42 IPL games since then, taking only 38 wickets. 

Read Also | IPL records: 5 youngest centurion in IPL

2. Sarfaraz Khan (17 years, 177 days, RCB, 2015)

Sarfraz Khan became one of the talking points of IPL 2015 when he made his IPL debut for Royal Challengers Bangalore at the age of 17 years, 177 days. His incredible debut against Chennai Super Kings even made Virat Kohli bow down to him, after he scored a quick 11 from 7 balls at the fag end of the inning. 

3. Rahul Chahar (17y 247d, RPS, 2017)

After a good Vijay Hazare Trophy in the 2016-17 season, Rahul Chahar was bought by Rising Pune Supergiant for 10 lakhs and was handed a debut for them at the age of 17y 247d. The leg spinner, though, got his success playing for the Mumbai Indians after joining them in 2018. 

Read Also | "Everything was too early for me; I have learned from the mistakes and am ready for that level now:" Prayas Ray Barman on his career after IPL

Other players who made their IPL debut before turning 18

1. Washington Sundar (17 years, 199 days, RPS, 2017)
2. Mujeeb Ur Rahman (17 years 11 days, KXIP (now PBKS), 2018)
3. Abhishek Sharma (17y 250d, DD (now DC), 2018)
4. Sandeep Lamichhane (17y 283d, DD (now DC), 2018)
5. Riyan Parag (17 years, 152 days, RR, 2019)
6. Prayas Ray Barman (16 years and 157 days, RCB, 2019)
7. Vaibhav Suryavanshi (14 years and 23 days, RR, 2025)

You can now play this IPL quiz to check if you remember all the names accurately or not. 

Delhi Capitals opener Jake Fraser-McGurk has been dropped from the team due to his consistently poor performance. During the match against Gujarat Titans on Saturday, the Axar Patel-led team made a change in the playing eleven and did not include the opener.

Let's take a look at Jake Fraser-McGurk's scores in IPL 2025 so far.

Also Read: Rashid Khan in IPL since 2024: Has he lost his Midas touch?

Fraser-McGurk's poor form continues

Before the IPL 2025, Fraser-McGurk could not do anything special in the ODI series against Sri Lanka in February. Earlier in the Big Bash League 2024-25, he could score only 188 runs in 10 matches.

His current approach–trying to hit almost every delivery–hasn’t yielded success, with frequent dismissals highlighting a lack of rhythm.

DC backs Fraser-McGurk

Despite the poor form of this young opener, the Delhi team has performed brilliantly. The team is at the top of the points table after winning five out of six matches. DC added Fraser to the team for Rs 9 crore using RTM in the IPL 2025 mega auction.

Fraser-McGurk got consistent opportunities in the current season also because experienced batsman Faf du Plessis is injured. Delhi's vice-captain du Plessis has not played any match since April 10. He was injured during the match against RCB.

Brilliant performance in IPL 2024

The Australian batter was one of the breakout stars of IPL 2024, with 330 runs in nine matches at a staggering strike rate of 234.04 with four half-centuries.

Since IPL 2024, Fraser-McGurk’s T20 numbers have dipped significantly. In 29 innings, he has scored 428 runs at an average of 14.75 and a strike rate of 131.7, which includes five ducks.

Also Read: IPL Facts: Lowest Total Defended in IPL

Jake Fraser-McGurk's Scores in IPL 2025

Jake Fraser-McGurk's Scores in IPL 2025 so far read: 0 (vs MI), 7 (vs RCB), 0 (vs CSK), 38 (vs SRH), 1 (vs LSG), and 9 (vs RR). His strike rate has dropped from 234 to just 100 this season. He has scored only 55 runs in six matches with a poor strike rate of 105.76. 

Gujarat Titans entered IPL 2025 with one of the best bowling line-ups. They had Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna and Ishant Sharma among fast bowlers. And Rashid Khan, Sai Kishore and Washington Sundar leading the spinners. But while you would have expected Rashid Khan to be the main stars, reality has been different. Rashid endured the worst-ever phase of bowling he’s had in any IPL, and he has been playing in the tournament since 2017. He has gone wicketless in 7 innings out of 18 since IPL 2024. 

So, let's take a look at the stats of 'Rashid Khan in IPL since 2024'.

Also Read: Most Wickets Among Spinner in IPL Since 2023

What has gone wrong with Rashid?

The Rashid Khan in IPL of 2017 to 2023 was a master at landing the ball where he wanted to. He would find that sweet spot where batters were neither confident coming forward because the ball was not full enough, nor rocking back because it wasn’t short enough. And with Rashid’s speeds, you couldn’t safely just read him off the pitch either.

Moreover, it was extremely difficult to pick his variations. The googly caught many a batter plumb or bowled, because when he delivered it the difference in action was miniscule compared to his leg-break. His changes of pace, sliders and top-spinners were equally subtle. There was a fizz to his bowling.

But of late, that control has been lacking. The master of length has been bowling too short, too full, and straying in line too. What could be the reason?

Rashid had back surgery in late 2023, and that could well be a contributing factor. Since his comeback from that surgery, he has been a diminished version of what he was at his peak. The numbers show that clearly.

Rashid Khan in IPL since 2024

There is a clear contrast between the 2025 numbers and those of previous years. IPL 2024 was the first time Rashid was a bit below average, although in the most batting-dominated season of all time, his numbers were still quite okay. But in 2025 that decline was steeper.

Rashid Khan in IPL over the years

From his first year in 2017, Rashid was a phenomenon. He was extremely difficult to score off, and despite opponents playing him defensively and trying to just get through his overs without damage, he was picking up regular wickets too.

Also Read: IPL Facts: Best Economy in IPL Since 2024

We expect Rashid to be back soon

Rashid still remains a key part of the Gujarat Titans. His experience and nous can’t be discounted, and he adds value with his batting too. As he showed against Royals, he can be handy with his bowling still. What has helped Titans is how Kishore has seamlessly stepped up, while Siraj and Prasidh are on track to have their best IPL seasons. That has allowed the team to not be too hindered by Rashid’s drop off. And they expect him to be back to his best soon too.

Whether this game marks the start of better fortunes for Rashid or not remains to be seen. But it did show that he can’t be discounted yet.