The Purple Cap is an annual cricket award given to the highest wicket-taker in the Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament. In the IPL 2026 season, Kagiso Rabada of the Gujarat Titans (GT) won the IPL 2026 Purple Cap by taking 29 wickets across 17 matches. During the tournament, the bowler leading the wicket charts wears an actual purple cap while fielding. If bowlers finish equal on wickets, the cap goes to the player with the lower economy rate. Harshal Patel (2021) and Dwayne Bravo (2013) share the absolute tournament record for the most wickets in a single IPL edition with an astonishing 32 wickets each. Fast bowlers have traditionally dominated the tournament. Out of all the editions, a traditional spinner has managed to win the coveted award only three times (Pragyan Ojha in 2010, Imran Tahir in 2019, and Yuzvendra Chahal in 2022). Kagiso Rabada dismissed Devdutt Padikkal with a stunner catch by Arshad Khan, to become the highest wicket taker and Purple Cap Winner of IPL 2026.

Rank

Player

Franchise

Matches

Wickets

Best Bowling

Economy

1

Kagiso Rabada

Gujarat Titans

17

29

3/25

9.44

2

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Royal Challengers Bengaluru

17

28

4/23

8.00

3

Jofra Archer

Rajasthan Royals

16

25

3/17

9.32

4

Anshul Kamboj

Chennai Super Kings

14

21

3/22

10.53

5

Eshan Malinga

Sunrisers Hyderabad

15

20

4/32

  

Read Also:- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi creates IPL history, becomes youngest ever Orange Cap winner

Royal Challengers Bengaluru defend IPL 2026 Trophy at Ahmedabad

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have successfully defended their IPL title, defeating the Gujarat Titans (GT) by 5 wickets in the IPL 2026 Final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Anchored by an explosive, unbeaten 75 off 42 balls from Virat Kohli*, the defending champions chased down a target of 156 with 12 balls to spare to secure back-to-back championships. Captain Rajat Patidar won a crucial toss and opted to bowl, unleashing a highly methodical bowling plan that choked out GT's dangerous batting line-up early. RCB's pace attack capitalised perfectly on the initial swing and grip of the Ahmedabad turf in the first innings. Josh Hazlewood got the ultimate breakthrough in the opening overs, unsettling GT captain Shubman Gill (10) with extra bounce, forcing a thick slice straight to Rajat Patidar.

Read Also: Andy Flower's RCB Record: From 2024 Comeback to Back-to-Back Titles

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) delivered a batting masterclass to comfortably chase down 156 runs in just 18 overs against Gujarat Titans. Instead of playing it safe, they launched a furious Powerplay assault led by Venkatesh Iyer, who blasted a rapid 32 off 16 balls to propel RCB to a massive 70/2 in the first six overs.The chase was entirely anchored by a legendary performance from Virat Kohli, who smashed his fastest-ever IPL half-century off just 25 balls. Despite a brief middle-order stumble and an visible physical injury strain, Kohli remained completely untroubled by GT's bowling attack. He engineered the chase with surgical precision, finishing unbeaten on a spectacular 75 off 42 deliveries*. Appropriately, Kohli sealed back-to-back IPL titles for RCB by launching a towering straight six in the 18th over to spark historic celebrations.