IPL: 3 Youngest players to win Orange Cap

The 20-20 format has always been a batting-friendly format compared to bowlers. Especially, in IPL, fans have always witnessed big scores on the board or big scores getting chased easily over the years.

In the last 15 IPL seasons, several batters managed to score a huge amount of runs for their respective franchises. In IPL, Orange Cap got introduced as an award for the batter with the most runs in a single season. But, along with some veteran batters, many of them also managed to win the cap at a very young age.       

Here are the top three youngest players to win Orange Cap in the history of IPL:

3. Virat Kohli, Kane Williamson, and KL Rahul (28 years)

These three players are in the third position by accomplishing this achievement at 28 years of age. In IPL 2016, Virat Kohli, playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore, won the Orange Cap with 973 runs in 16 matches, at an average of 81.08 and a strike rate of 152.03. He smashed four centuries and seven fifties.

In IPL 2018, Kane Williamson, playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad, won the Orange Cap with 735 runs in 17 matches, at an average of 52.50 and a strike rate of 142.44. He smashed only eight fifties. Then, in IPL 2020, KL Rahul, playing for KXIP, won the Orange Cap with 670 runs, at an average of 55.83 and a strike rate of 129.34. He smashed one century and five fifties.         

2. Shaun Marsh (25 years)

This veteran Aussie batter lit up the tournament in its inaugural season by winning the Orange Cap. At that time, Shaun Marsh was 25 years old. In IPL 2008, Marsh scored 616 runs in 11 matches, at an average of 68.44 and a strike rate of 139.68. He also notched up one century and five fifties.

His best knock came against the eventual champion of that season, RR in the 56th match of the tournament. Marsh scored 115 runs off 69 balls, including 11 fours and seven sixes. His form helped Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) to qualify for the playoffs. But, they lost against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the second semi-final.   

1. Ruturaj Gaikwad (24 years)

This CSK opener tops the chart as he won the Orange Cap in IPL 2021 at the age of 24 years. Thus, he became the youngest player to manage this achievement. In that season, he scored 635 runs in 16 matches, at an average of 45.35 and a strike rate of 136.26. He also notched up four fifties and one century.

His best knock came against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at Abu Dhabi when he smashed his maiden IPL ton. Gaikwad scored 101* runs off 60 balls, including nine fours and five sixes. His form was crucial as CSK won that edition after defeating Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the final.