Masters of Control: Ranking the Bowlers with the Best All-Time Economy Rates in IPL History (Min. 100 Overs Bowled)

Notably, the early half of the IPL witnessed some of the cricketing legends take the field and put their body on the line with rigorous hard work and display of skill. Adapting to a new format isn’t a walk in the park. But the likes of Anil Kumble and Muttiah Muralitharan did it with authority. 
Kumble tops the chart with a bowling economy reading of 6.57 in 42 matches. He’s picked up 45 wickets at a bowling average of 23.51, including a career-best figures fifer in the final of the second edition against the mighty Deccan Chargers led by Adam Gilchrist. He played the game for his home side – the Royal Challengers Bengaluru – and almost led them to a trophy until a humdinger favoured the Chargers in 2009. 
The first two editions of the tournament saw some of the renowned batters of that era, including Chris Gayle, Ricky Ponting, Brendon McCullum, Stephen Fleming, Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden, Andrew Symonds, Shane Watson, Herschelle Gibbs, Shahid Afridi, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Sanath Jayasuriya, AB de Villiers, etc. Leg-spinners are often targeted by the opposition batters during the middle overs. Moreover, that particular era had a plethora of batters who were confident in going all guns blazing against spin. And to bowl economical spells against these batters is a heist in itself.
On the flip side, Muralitharan, one of the greats that Sri Lankan cricket ever gave birth to, represented the Chennai Super Kings during the early stages of his career. Renowned for his peculiar action – a combination of deformed elbow, supple wrists, and rapid rotation of arms, as that of pacers – the Kandy-bred cricketer’s action often came under scrutiny from the game’s observers. However, his genius silenced all the doubters as the finger spinner went on to bag 800 test wickets, a feat achieved by none in International cricket. 
However, Muralitharan’s greatness was not just curbed to the international circuit but also in the franchise tournaments, highlighted by his IPL excellence. In 66 games in the tourney, the offie bagged 63 wickets with a bowling average of 26.92. Unlike the matches-to-wicket ratio (0.95), it’s his bowling economy of 6.67 that stands out. After Kumble, Muralitharan has the best economy in the league so far, making him one of the best in the business. Often, the batters failed to read his variations -- doosra, off-spin, and top-spinner, among others. This makes him one of the greatest of all time in International cricket and the IPL. He also represented Kochi Tuskers Kerala and Royal Challengers Bengaluru but tasted limited success.

For the majority of cricket enthusiasts who have followed IPL for the last decade, Sunil Narine and Rashid Khan must be the names that pop into their heads when they hear the term ‘spin mystery.’ The pair have been one of the most successful spinners in the tournament, befuddling the opposition batters for fun. What makes the duo truly special is their ability to evolve and bring their A-game irrespective of the setbacks received in life and career.

Narine was picked by the Kolkata Knight Riders franchise in the 2012 auction, surprising many at the auction table. It was captain Gautam Gambhir who suggested to the management to go for the Trinidad cricketer who was less known in the cricketing circuit then. The ploy turned out mesmerising for the Knights as the mystery spinner was too hot to handle at his peak. Opposition batters struggled to pick the variations from Narine’s hand, leading to embarrassing failures.

In his first couple of seasons, Narine won the IPL title twice for the Knight Riders - in 2012 and 2014, snaring 24 and 21 wickets at an economy of 5.47 and 6.35, respectively. Although his bowling action went through the scanner many times, the uncanny operator found ways to bounce back and make an impact with the ball in hand. In addition, Narine was also sent at the top of the order as a pinch-hitter to capitalise on the powerplay phase in 2017. The all-rounder didn’t fail in the role, smashing 224 and 357 runs in 2017 and 2018, respectively. When KKR won their third title in 2024, Narine was the most valuable player of the season, mustering 488 runs at an average of 34.86 and a strike rate of 180.74/ He also belted his maiden IPL century, while scalping 17 wickets at an economy of 6.69.

On the flip side, Rashid Khan made his maiden IPL appearance in 2017 for the Sunrisers Hyderabad, a year after the side won their only title thus far. He picked up 93 wickets in the first five editions for the Orange army and had the knack of flummoxing the opposition with a quick wrong’un. The fact that Rashid had a great arm spin during release added to the batter’s misery in picking the right variation.

Ahead of the 2022 mega-auction, the Afghanistan spinner was snapped by the Gujarat Titans, where he played a pivotal part in lifting their maiden IPL title. Not only has he been taking wickets for fun, but Rashid added major contributions with the willow in hand, lower down the order. His cameos often chased down totals for the side or propelled their first innings tally. 

However, the IPL 2024 and 2025 editions have been a tad wayward for the Afghan superstar. Since his return from a back injury that demanded surgery, Rashid seems to have lost his bowling spark. He bagged only ten wickets from twelve appearances in IPL 17, followed by eight scalps in eleven games until Match No. 56 of IPL 18, thus far. Often, he has been taken to the cleaners by the opposition batsmen. But it doesn’t make Rashid an inferior character in the list. This could well be a lean patch, soon to make way for a merry time. With the economy reading 6.96, Rashid is seventh in the list of bowlers with the lowest economy rate in IPL.

Pace and control are two different traits that constitute a bowler’s excellence. As a fast bowler, it is difficult to maintain both entities at the same time. Most bowlers tend to err with their control while trying to work on their pace. Often, we have seen bowlers clicking 150 kmph plus being taken to the cleaners by the opposition batters. This is mainly due to errors in the line and length of the delivery. One may attempt a pace-on yorker, but it might get overcooked into a full-toss, or one may attempt a sharp bumper, which may sit well for the batter due to a bowler’s poor execution. This is often the case with many world-class bowlers who played in the IPL. But there are always exceptions. There are always a few geniuses who figure out a way to shine brightly from the rest. Dale Steyn stands apart from the rest in this realm of fast bowling with precision and utmost control.

Steyn was a part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru side at the start of the competition for the initial three years before making a shift to the Deccan Chargers for the next couple of years between 2010-2011. Right after, the Chargers were abandoned from the IPL, making way for a new franchise based out of Hyderabad – the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Steyn represented the side for the next three editions until 2015 before a one-off match appearance for the Gujarat Lions. This is the period when he was struck by monotonous setbacks in the form of injuries, causing a delayed return to competitive cricket. During the dying stages of his cricket career, the Bengaluru side snared back Steyn ahead of the 2019 edition, picking up only five wickets in as many matches across the two seasons. 

The Proteas pacer’s best with the cork in the Indian mega event came during 2011-2015 for the Deccan Chargers and the Sunrisers, bagging 77 wickets from 61 games across five seasons. However, with Steyn, it wasn’t only about the wickets and attacking bowling with an amalgamation of pace and lateral movement. He was economical across the various phases of a T20 game. Be it with the new ball, the middle overs phase, or the slog overs, the South African pacer was at the top of his game for a good period. In 95 matches, his economy read 6.91 with a bowling strike rate of 22.40.