Top 5 Pairs With The Most Runs In A Single IPL Season

Chennai Super Kings clinched their fourth IPL title after beating Kolkata Knight Riders by 27 runs on Friday at Dubai International Cricket Stadium. CSK made an early exit last year and the cricket pundits predicted a similar fate in IPL 2021. However, the Yellow Army shut all the critics with outstanding performances and finished the season as the winners.

There is no denying that the in-form duo of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis was one of the biggest reasons behind CSK’s success this year. Both did the bulk of scoring for the franchise. Partnerships are key to building big totals in the shortest format and Gaikwad and Du Plessis ensured they set the foundation with solid partnerships at the top of the order.

The Punjab Kings’ opening pair of KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal was also prolific with the bat as well. Besides, Shubman Gill and Venkatesh Iyer stitched a number of valuable partnerships in the second leg of IPL 2021.

Over the years, the fans have witnessed seen some great batting pairs in IPL. We have seen them score a plethora of runs for the franchise, that too in a single edition. And, on that note, here’s a look at the top five pairs with the most number of runs in a single IPL season.

Top 5 Pairs With The Most Runs In A Single IPL Season

5. David Warner and Shikhar Dhawan – 731 runs in IPL 2016

Sunrisers Hyderabad is one of the most consistent outfits in IPL. It’s because they always had a strong opening pair. Shikhar Dhawan and David Warner scored a plethora of runs together for the opening wicket for a number of years for SRH. They, in fact, scored the most runs as a pair in the 2o16 edition of the tournament.

Both the batsmen were in outstanding form with the bat and gave the franchise sensational starts at the top of the order. The duo batted together as openers in IPL 2016. Together, they compiled 731 runs for the opening wicket, which was also the second most as a pair that season.

Thanks to those partnerships, Sunrisers Hyderabad went on to reach the final and win the maiden IPL title. Warner finished that season as the second-highest run-scorer, while Shikhar Dhawan was fourth on the list.

4. Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan- 744 runs in IPL 2021

Shikhar Dhawan returned to the Delhi franchise in IPL 2018 and formed a great opening pair with Prithvi Shaw. The duo has played a vital role in turning Delhi’s fortunes in the last few years. Both compliments each other brilliantly and has made a reputation as one of the most destructive opening pairs. Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw scored the most run together as an opening pair in the recently concluded IPL 2021.

The duo amassed 744 runs together, which is currently the fourth most as a pair in IPL. Both the batsmen, though, struggled on the slow UAE tracks in the second leg and thus got out on low scores. They didn’t have the same impact that they had in the India leg of the tournament. Otherwise, the pair could have crossed the 900-run mark quite easily.

3. Faf du Plessis and Ruturaj Gaikwad- 756 runs in 2021 IPL

Chennai Super Kings found a new opening pair in Ruturaj Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis this year. Given how the two batted this year, Chennai Super Kings would be wanting to play with a similar opening pair in the years to come.

Both complimented each other really well and never tried to outclass each other. The kind of maturity shown by Gaikwad was certainly impressive. The duo gave CSK some heart-warming starts and set the right foundation for big scores.

The duo amassed 756 runs together for the opening wicket in IPL 2021, which is overall the third-most number of runs by a pair in a single IPL season.

2. David Warner and Jonny Bairstow- 791 runs in IPL 2019

Jonny Bairstow made his debut in IPL for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2019 edition. He made headlines with his aggressive stroke-play in the powerplay overs. Bairstow formed a dangerous opening pair with David Warner that season and helped the team in getting fierce starts in the powerplay.

The duo scored 791 runs as a pair in IPL 2019, which is the second most to date in the history of the competition.

1. AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli- 939 runs in IPL 2016

2016 will be remembered for the outstanding batsmanship by Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. The duo played a significant role in riving RCB’s campaign in IPL 2016. Needing four consecutive wins to reach the playoffs, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers stitched the highest partnership in the history of the Indian Premier League. The duo added 229 runs for the second wicket to get RCB back on track.

They stitched a number of vital partnerships during the tournament and scored 939 runs together. And thus hold the record for scoring the most runs as a pair in a single season.

Virat Kohli led the run-charts that season, scoring a record 973 runs in 16 matches at an average of 81.08. RCB, unfortunately, couldn’t win the title as they lost to SRH in the summit clash.