Rabada climbs IPL Purple Cap ladder with crucial 3-wicket haul in 2026

Kagiso Rabada took 3 wickets in a high-scoring IPL 2026 clash as Gujarat Titans defeated Chennai Super Kings by eight wickets.

Purple Cap Standings Shift Sunday’s IPL 2026 double-header saw 26 wickets tumble across two matches, including a Super Over thriller. On the Purple Cap front, Kagiso Rabada delivered a match-winning spell of 4-0-25-3 to steer Gujarat Titans (GT) to an eight-wicket triumph over Chennai Super Kings (CSK). The Chepauk pitch retained excess moisture from afternoon preparations, creating helpful conditions for seamers. Rabada capitalized by firing deliveries at 145 kph, leveraging extra bounce to trouble CSK’s batters consistently. His figures elevated him to joint-third on the Purple Cap chart with 13 wickets from eight innings, tying him with two others at that mark. ## Top Bowlers Share the Lead CSK’s Anshul Kamboj and Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Eshan Malinga remain at the summit of the Purple Cap race, each holding 14 wickets. Rabada’s performance underscored his ability to dominate in conditions that favored pace and bounce. The match conditions at Chepauk played a decisive role, as groundstaff attempted to balance pitch wear in extreme summer heat. Despite the moisture, the surface held up better than feared, rewarding bowlers who exploited the extra grip. ## Orange Cap Gets a Triple Swap The Orange Cap witnessed a dramatic reshuffle within 24 hours as Virat Kohli (320 runs) dropped from first to fifth. Punjab Kings (PBKS) posted a colossal 265 against Delhi Capitals (DC), while Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) chased down 229 against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the same evening. As darkness fell in Delhi, DC opener KL Rahul claimed the top spot with a match-winning 152 not out, the highest individual T20 score by an Indian batter. His unbeaten knock lifted him to 357 runs in seven innings, but his reign at the summit lasted under two hours. ## Teenage Blaster Steals the Spotlight Meanwhile in Jaipur, 19-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi blazed to a 37-ball 103 to also reach 357 runs, matching Rahul’s tally. Sooryavanshi seized the Orange Cap due to a superior strike rate, becoming the youngest to top the batting charts in IPL 2026. Within an hour, SRH opener Abhishek Sharma leapfrogged both with a 29-ball 57, propelling him to 380 runs. Sharma’s fourth fifty-plus score in eight innings now places him atop the charts with a commanding lead. ## Top Order Consolidates Positions Abhishek Sharma leads the batting standings with 380 runs, ahead of Sooryavanshi (357) and Rahul (357). Heinrich Klaasen reinforced his position inside the top five by contributing 29 runs in SRH’s victory, lifting his season tally to 349. Klaasen now sits just above Shubman Gill (330) and Kohli (328) in the rankings. The churn at the top reflects the aggressive starts and consistent performances from multiple franchises this season. ## Key Batting and Bowling Stats The IPL 2026 table reflects a high-scoring weekend with multiple milestones achieved. KL Rahul’s 152 not out remains the highest individual score by an Indian in T20 cricket. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s century marked his first in the IPL, while Abhishek Sharma continued his fine run with a rapid fifty. On the bowling front, Rabada’s three-wicket haul included key dismissals that tilted the match in GT’s favor. The dual results highlighted contrasting fortunes across venues and conditions.