MOST ECONOMICAL SPINNERS

Challengers Bangalore’s death over woes. With 17 wickets, he tops the bowlers’ chart. His success meant Navdeep Saini got only one game for RCB.

Among the other pacers who featured in the England series, Bumrah (6 wickets, 7 matches) was yet to strike big for Mumbai Indians when IPL was postponed. His economy of 7.11 though showed batsmen struggled to get going against him. Shardul Thakur (5 wickets, 7 games, 10.33 economy) could not leave a mark with CSK. If Patel was RCB’S biggest gain, leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal’s poor form was their biggest worry. Indian selectors would be concerned too.

Chahal had established himself by providing crucial breaks but this time he didn’t feature among the top seven Indian bowlers in the middle overs. He could take only four wickets in seven games at an economy of 8.26 and he was predictable with his variations.

Rahul Chahar, playing for MI, was the pick of the Indian legspinners. With 11 wickets in seven games, he was the best spinner in IPL 2021. In two games, against Kolkata Knight Riders (4/27) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (3/19) he almost single-handedly took Mumbai home. With Kuldeep Yadav’s (did not get a game) stocks falling fast, Rahul will be a front-runner for an India spot.

Among others, Jadeja (6 wickets, 7 matches) left a big impact with his terrific economy rate of 6.70. That he shone with the bat added to his value. Indian selectors will be pleased that his likefor-like replacement Axar Patel (6 wickets, 4 games, 7.00 ER) is not far behind.