The Purple Cap is the top award in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Every year it goes to the bowler who takes the most wickets in the tournament. Started in 2008, the Purple Cap shows who is good at bowling and some of the world’s best fast bowlers and spinners have won it. This award is about someone’s individual performance and also about how well their team does. The bowler who takes the most wickets makes a big difference in games.
Over the years many bowlers have gone for the Purple Cap and done amazing things. A few have even won it more than once, proving they can play well season after season. The trophy is to honour bowlers who can play in different situations, handle pressure and beat batsmen with speed, swing, spin and cleverness.
IPL Purple Cap Winners List
Here’s a table that tells you who won the Purple Cap in each IPL season from 2008 till now.
| Year | Player | Team | Wickets Taken |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Sohail Tanvir | Rajasthan Royals | 22 |
| 2009 | RP Singh | Deccan Chargers | 23 |
| 2010 | Pragyan Ojha | Deccan Chargers | 21 |
| 2011 | Lasith Malinga | Mumbai Indians | 28 |
| 2012 | Morne Morkel | Delhi Daredevils | 25 |
| 2013 | Dwayne Bravo | Chennai Super Kings | 32 |
| 2014 | Mohit Sharma | Chennai Super Kings | 23 |
| 2015 | Dwayne Bravo | Chennai Super Kings | 26 |
| 2016 | Bhuvneshwar Kumar | Sunrisers Hyderabad | 23 |
| 2017 | Bhuvneshwar Kumar | Sunrisers Hyderabad | 26 |
| 2018 | Andrew Tye | Kings XI Punjab | 24 |
| 2019 | Imran Tahir | Chennai Super Kings | 26 |
| 2020 | Kagiso Rabada | Delhi Capitals | 30 |
| 2021 | Harshal Patel | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 32 |
| 2022 | Yuzvendra Chahal | Rajasthan Royals | 27 |
| 2023 | Mohammed Shami | Gujarat Titans | 28 |
| 2024 | Harshal Patel | Punjab Kings | 24 |
| 2025 | Prasidh Krishna | Gujarat Titans | 25 |
Repeat Holders of the Purple Cap
Some bowlers have won the Purple Cap more than once. This means they are really good bowlers in the IPL:
Harshal Patel (Royal Challengers Bangalore/Punjab Kings) won it twice, in 2021 and 2024.
He even equalled Dj Bravo’s record of picking up most Wickets in a single edition (2021).
Dwayne Bravo (Chennai Super Kings) also won it twice, in 2013 and 2015.
In the 2013 season DJ Bravo was unstoppable picking up 32 wickets which is still a record for picking up most Wickets in the single edition of IPL.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (Sunrisers Hyderabad) is special because he won it two years in a row, in 2016 and 2017.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar played an important role for SRH in both 2016,17 season, He was literally breathing fire and helped orange army to win IPL for the first time in 2016 season.
The Purple Cap in the Indian Premier League shows who the best bowlers are each season. The awesome players who have won this award have shown they have skill, can keep going and know how to plan well. The competition is tough and every season we see a new great bowler who makes a big impact in the league. The Purple Cap is not just about who takes the most wickets, it’s about who is most important to their IPL team’s bowling attack.
