Take a look at every Orange Cap winner in IPL history. From Shaun Marsh in 2008 to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in 2026, almost every name on that list walked out to open the batting. Of the 19 Orange Caps awarded across 19 seasons, 18 went to openers. One went to a No. 3 batter. Zero went to anyone batting at No. 4 or below.
That is not a coincidence. It is a structural problem with how the award works.
The Orange Cap is given to the player who scores the most runs in a single IPL season. It was introduced in 2008 by then-chairman Lalit Modi to create a visible reward for batting excellence. The rule is simple: score more runs than everyone else, wear the cap. In case of a tie, strike rate decides the winner. The prize money for IPL 2026 was Rs 10 lakh.
Simple rules do not always mean fair outcomes.
Openers have a built-in advantage that no other batting position gets. They walk in at the start of the innings with 20 overs ahead of them. They face the powerplay overs when only two fielders are allowed outside the 30-yard circle. The ball is hard and new. The field is up. Every run they score counts toward their total, and they have the most time to build a big number.
A middle-order batter walking in at No. 5 or No. 6 gets none of these luxuries.
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As a professional who has batted in multiple positions, the difference is not small. It is massive. An opener who bats through 15-16 overs will face 50 to 60 deliveries in a match. A middle-order batter walking in at the 14th over may get 15 to 20 deliveries. In a 14-match season, that difference adds up to 400 to 600 extra balls faced by openers compared to middle-order batters. The Orange Cap rewards the batter who faces the most balls, not necessarily the one who has the most impact. That is why it is a competition almost exclusively between openers. The award does not know the difference between scoring 60 off 45 balls in the powerplay and scoring 60 off 25 balls in the death overs. It treats them the same.
The numbers back this up without argument.
Kane Williamson won the Orange Cap in 2018 with 735 runs for Sunrisers Hyderabad. He batted at No. 3 and is the only non-opener to win the award in IPL history. Wikipedia states it plainly: “Kane Williamson was the only non-opener to win Orange Cap.” Everyone else on the list Shaun Marsh, Matthew Hayden, Sachin Tendulkar, Chris Gayle, Michael Hussey, Robin Uthappa, David Warner (three times), Virat Kohli (twice), KL Rahul, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Jos Buttler, Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi all openers.
David Warner has the most Orange Caps with three. Chris Gayle is the only back-to-back winner. Virat Kohli holds the single-season record with 973 runs in 2016. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi became the youngest Orange Cap winner in 2026 at 15 years old he went on to make his India debut breaking Sachin Tendulkar’s 37-year record scoring 776 runs at a strike rate of 237.30. Every single one of them walked out to open.
AB de Villiers put it in one line.
“Orange cap only competition between No. 1/2 and rarely No. 3.”
AB de Villiers, former RCB batter, quoted by Editorji, April 2023
That is the most accurate description of the Orange Cap ever given. It is not a competition for the best batter in the tournament. It is a competition for the best opener in the tournament, with the occasional No. 3 joining in.
Yuzvendra Chahal said the same thing in his own words.
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“To be honest, opening batters shouldn’t even be competing for the Orange Cap. It’s unfair to the middle-order batters.”
Yuzvendra Chahal, Rajasthan Royals bowler, 360 Show, July 2026
Chahal made these remarks on the 360 Show with Yuzvendra Chahal on his official YouTube channel. As a bowler who has watched openers and middle-order batters from close range across 10+ IPL seasons, his view matches what the numbers show.
Tom Moody, former Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach who has seen his players win multiple Orange Caps, offered the fix.
The highly sought after Orange Cap should be judged with S/R in mind.
I believe runs + S/R combined are more valuable/relevant in #T20.
This would also include middle order batters who are rarely in contention.
What that formula is, I’ll leave to the experts. @IPL— Tom Moody (@TomMoodyCricket) April 11, 2023
“The highly sought after Orange Cap should be judged with S/R in mind. I believe runs + S/R combined are more valuable/relevant in #T20. This would also include middle order batters who are rarely in contention. What that formula is, I’ll leave to the experts.”
Tom Moody, former SRH head coach, Twitter, April 2023
Tom Moody made these remarks on his verified Twitter account on April 12, 2023. No official IPL response has been made to his suggestion.
Moody’s point is simple. In T20 cricket, strike rate matters as much as total runs. A batter who scores 400 runs at a strike rate of 180 is more valuable than a batter who scores 500 runs at a strike rate of 125. But the Orange Cap only sees the 500. It ignores the context of when those runs came, against what bowling, and in which phase of the innings.
The IPL could change this. A weighted metric that combines total runs with strike rate, adjusted for the tournament’s average strike rate, would level the playing field. It would allow a No. 6 finisher who scores 350 runs at a strike rate of 200 to compete with an opener who scores 600 at 140. It would make the Orange Cap a genuine award for the best T20 batter in the tournament, not just the batter who faced the most deliveries.
Until that change happens, the Orange Cap will remain what it has always been. A reward for being the best opener in the league. Nothing more.
Sources:
- IPL Orange Cap winners list 2008-2026, Wikipedia
- AB de Villiers quote, Editorji, April 2023
- IPL 2026 Orange Cap final standings, BBC Sport
