Indian Premier League (IPL) is the most entertaining T20 league in the world where several cricket superstars face off against each other. Usually, the T20 format is heavily dominated by the batsman. Heavy bats and shorter boundaries have given a lot of advantages to batsmen in the shortest format of cricket.
IPL has witnessed several big totals being made and also chased by the teams. In this article we would discuss the Top5 highest totals in the history of the Indian Premier League:
List of Top5 highest totals in IPL
| TEAM | SCORE | OPPOSITION | YEAR | CITY |
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | 263 | Pune Warriors | 2013 | Bengaluru |
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | 248 | Gujarat Lions | 2016 | Bengaluru |
| Chennai Super Kings | 246 | Rajasthan Royals | 2010 | Chennai |
| Kolkata Knight Riders | 245 | Kings XI Punjab | 2018 | Indore |
| Chennai Super Kings | 240 | Kings XI Punjab | 2008 | Mohali |
RCB – 263/5 vs PWI in 2012
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) holds the record for scoring the highest total in an IPL inning. RCB scored a mammoth total of 263 against Pune Warriors on 23rd April 2013. Gayle storm hit the Chinnaswamy stadium and the Pune bowling attack had no answers for the destruction caused by Gayle.
Chris Gayle scored 175* runs against Pune in this match which remains the highest individual score in the history of IPL. AB De Villiers too played an impactful knock of 31 runs in 8 balls. In reply to this massive target, Pune Warriors could score just 133 runs. Chris Gayle also picked two wickets. In this match, RCB also created a record of smashing the most sixes (21) in an IPL inning.
RCB – 248/3 vs GL in 2016
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) scored a massive score of 248/3 in 20 overs while batting against Gujarat Lions in Chinnaswamy stadium. Virat Kohli and AB De Villiers stitched a 229 runs partnership in 16 overs after the early dismissal of Chris Gayle. Virat Kohli scored 109 runs in 55 balls which included 5 fours and 8 sixes.
AB De Villiers too joined the party and played a brilliant knock of 129 runs in 52 balls. The innings consisted of 10 fours and 12 sixes. Gujarat Lion’s bowling attack had no answers for the partnership of Virat Kohli and AB De Villiers. In response to the target of 230 runs, Gujarat Lions managed to score just 104 runs.
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CSK – 246/5 vs RR in 2010
In the 2010 season of the Indian Premier League, Chennai Super Kings put up a total of 246 runs against Rajasthan Royal in M Chidambaram stadium. It is the third-highest total in the history of IPL. Murali Vijay put up a show of clean hitting and scored 127 runs off just 56 balls. Vijay didn’t spare any bowler of Rajasthan in this mind-blowing knock.
Albie Morkel played an impactful knock of 62 runs off just 34 balls. The best part about this total of CSK was that it came in a low-scoring ground of Chepauk. Rajasthan Royals gave a good fightback with the bat by scoring 223 runs but eventually fell short by 23 runs.
KKR – 245/6 vs KXIP in 2018
Flat pitches and shorter boundaries are a perfect recipe for scoring big totals in T20 cricket. Similar scenes were seen at Indore in a match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab in the 2018 season of IPL Sunil Narine’s 36-ball 75 and Dinesh Karthik’s 23-ball 50 helped Kolkata score 245 runs against Punjab after being invited to bat first. It is the fourth-highest total in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Chris Lynn, Robin Uthappa, and Andre Russell also chipped in with crucial cameos. KL Rahul’s 29 balls 66 runs knock kept Punjab in the hunt for a run chase. But Punjab couldn’t cross the finishing line and faced a defeat by a margin of 31 runs.
CSK – 240/5 vs KXIP in 2008
Chennai Super Kings once again finds a place in this list. CSK scored 240 runs while batting first against Kings XI Punjab. CSK took a brave decision to bat first in Mohali. CSK lost an early wicket to Parthiv Patel. Matthew Hayden and MS Dhoni too fell short. But southpaws Michael Hussey and Suresh Raina made a brilliant partnership.
Hussey played a flamboyant knock of 116 runs off 54 balls which consisted of 8 fours and 9 sixes. Raina and Badrinath too played cameos with a strike rate of more than 200. In response to this mammoth total of 240 runs, Punjab managed to score 207 runs and fell short by 33 runs.
Conclusion
Royal Challengers Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings found a place twice on this list of Top5 highest team totals in the history of IPL. M Chinnaswamy stadium has been a witness of the top two highest totals. A destructive trio of Virat Kohli, AB De Villiers, and Gayle, and also shorter boundaries played a big role in it. Chennai Super Kings managed to find a place in the third position despite playing at Chepauk which is a low-scoring ground.
CSK was also the first team to score a total of 240 in the history of IPL. Nowadays it’s difficult for teams to score mammoth totals because of improvement in bowling quality in IPL since 2018.
FAQ
Q1) Who is the leading wicket-taker in the history of the IPL?
Ans) Dwayne Bravo is the top wicket-taker in IPL.
Q2) Which batsman has the highest strike rate in the IPL (min 1000+ runs)?
Ans) Andre Russell has the highest strike rate in the history of IPL with a minimum of 1000 runs scored.
Q3) Which team has won the IPL title the most number of times?
Ans) Mumbai Indians have won IPL titles the most number of times (5).
