Orange Cap Race Heats Up: Kohli Moves to Second Spot

The race for the Orange Cap in IPL 2025 is getting tighter, with consistent performances and late surges reshuffling the leaderboard.

Gujarat Titans' B Sai Sudharsan continues to lead the run-scoring charts, tallying 417 runs in eight matches at an average of 52.12 and an impressive strike rate of 152.18. But hot on his heels is Virat Kohli, who has jumped to second place after scoring back-to-back fifties—his latest being a fluent 70 off 42 balls. Kohli now has 392 runs from nine innings, showing he’s still very much in the hunt.

Dropping to third is Nicholas Pooran of Lucknow Super Giants. After dominating the Orange Cap leaderboard through most of the season, a recent dip in form sees him sitting on 377 runs from nine outings.

Mumbai Indians' Suryakumar Yadav holds the fourth spot with 373 runs, showcasing remarkable consistency. Though he hasn't posted a massive score yet, he’s avoided major failures—his innings this season read: 29, 48, 27*, 67, 28, 40, 26, 68*, and 40*.

Right behind him are Jos Buttler (GT) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (RR), both with 356 runs. Notably, Jaiswal has bounced back strong after a slow start, delivering knocks of 75, 51, 74, and 49 in his last four games.

Purple Cap Duel: Hazlewood Catches Up with Prasidh Krishna

Over on the bowling side, Gujarat Titans’ Prasidh Krishna still holds the Purple Cap with 16 wickets in eight matches. But now he’s joined at the top by Josh Hazlewood, who picked up a fiery 4/33 against Rajasthan Royals, helping RCB seal a key win.

Hazlewood matches Krishna in wicket tally but sits second due to a slightly higher economy rate and bowling average.

Chasing the top two is a competitive pack of bowlers with 12 wickets each, including:

• R Sai Kishore & Mohammed Siraj (GT)
   
• Noor Ahmad (CSK)
   
• Kuldeep Yadav (DC)
   
• Hardik Pandya (MI)
   
• Shardul Thakur (LSG)
   
• Krunal Pandya (RCB), who entered the club with a 2/31 spell against RR
   

Among these, Kuldeep Yadav stands out with the best economy rate of 6.50, followed by Noor Ahmad at 7.66, making them key assets in the middle overs.

As the tournament enters its crucial phase, both leaderboards remain wide open. Will Kohli overtake Sudharsan? Can Hazlewood claim the Purple Cap outright? Stay tuned — IPL 2025 is far from done.