Most Wickets in 1st Over of IPL

In the 14th match of the IPL 2024, Rajasthan Royals (RR) fast bowler Trent Boult took 3 wickets while bowling lethally against Mumbai Indians (MI). Due to his devastating bowling at the Wankhede Stadium, MI could only score 125/9 despite playing the entire over. After that, Boult has now become the bowler taking the joint highest wicket in the first over in IPL. He has taken 25 wickets (80 innings) while bowling the first over of the innings. Let's take a look at the bowlers with 'Most Wickets in 1st Over of IPL'. 

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Most Wickets in 1st Over of IPL

1. Trent Boult | 25 Wickets 

Rajasthan Royals fast bowler Trent Boult has the most wickets in 1st over of IPL. He has become the joint-highest wicket-taker after the 14th match of the IPL 2024 with 25 Wickets (80 innings) in 486 balls. Boult got Rohit Sharma (0) caught out by wicketkeeper Sanju Samson on the 5th ball of the first over of the match. He then showed the way to the pavilion to Naman Dhir (0) on the very next ball. This is the 5th time that Boult has taken 2 wickets in the opening over of the innings. After him, Dale Steyn, Praveen Kumar and Umesh Yadav have done this 2 times each. 

Boult played his first IPL match on April 11, 2015, against Chennai Super Kings. So far, he has taken 110 wickets in 91 matches in the league at an average of 26.12 and an economy rate of 8.28. His best performance during this period has been taking 4 wickets while giving 18 runs. Before RR in his career, Boult has played for Delhi Capitals (DC), MI, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).

2. Bhuvneshwar Kumar | 25 Wickets

When it comes to ranking some of the best bowlers in IPL history, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is right up there at the top. Although, he is not at the peak of his powers at the moment, the Indian pacer will be regarded as one of IPL's all-time greats. 

The Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer has picked up 25 wickets in the first over of the IPL. Bhuvi has the joint most wickets in the first over of IPL. He has taken 25 wickets in 696 balls but Boult reigns supreme at the top as he took just 486 balls to reach the mark. In 132 IPL matches, Bhuvi has picked up 142 wickets and is effective with both, the new ball and in the death overs.

3. Praveen Kumar | 15 Wickets

The right-arm seamer Praveen Kumar has the third most wickets in 1st over of IPL. He has had a 10-year-long IPL career, in which he has taken 15 wickets in the first over to his name and has deceived the batters with his immaculate control. 

Praveen has played 119 matches and picked 90 wickets at an average of 36.12. Kumar famously picked up a hat trick in the 2010 edition of the tournament against Rajasthan Royals and became the sixth player in the history of the tournament to achieve the feat.

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4. Sandeep Sharma | 13 Wickets 

Rajasthan Royals player Sandeep Sharma, undoubtedly one of the better bowlers with the new ball, has the fourth highest wickets in 1st over of IPL. Sandeep has 13 scalps to his name in the first over of IPL at an average of 28.92, and an economy rate of just 5.29. 

The 30-year-old pacer has picked up 125 wickets in 118 IPL outings at an average of 27.65. The former Sunrisers Hyderabad player’s best bowling figure in IPL came against Delhi Capitals in 2017, where he picked up four wickets, whilst conceding just 20 runs in four overs. A certain achievement in the pacer’s career is that he holds the record for dismissing Virat Kohli on most occasions in IPL. 

5. Deepak Chahar | 12 Wickets 

Deepak Chahar rose to prominence in the IPL 2018 campaign, where MS Dhoni entrusted the youngster with the new ball. There was no looking back for Chahar, as he repaid his captain’s faith in him, and has become a mainstay in the Chennai Super Kings side for the last six seasons.

Deepak Chahar generally bowls about three overs in the powerplay overs, as he is most effective with the new ball. The 31-year-old pacer has picked up 12 wickets in the first over of IPL, at an average of 39.90, and an economy rate of 6.76. Overall, the talented pacer has 75 wickets in his 76 IPL matches at an average of 28.35. 

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6. Zaheer Khan | 12 Wickets

One of the greatest bowlers in the history of Indian cricket, Zaheer Khan has 12 wickets when he bowled the first overs in the IPL. The veteran Indian pacer ranks fifth on the list of most wickets in 1st over of IPL. In his IPL career, Zaheer has clinched 102 wickets with an appreciable economy of 7.59 in 100 matches, making him one of the best bowlers in the league. Due to his great sense of cricket, he has also captained Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals). He had a perfect blend of brawns and brain with an astute cricketing mind and ability to match.