Best Bowling Performances of Chris Woakes in IPL
In terms of making money, no tournament can be as profitable for a cricketer as the Indian Premier League. However, while it can earn you a fortune, it can also snatch it back from at any given time. English all-rounder Chris Woakes‘ tale so far in this competition runs similarly on those lines. Woakes got his first chance in IPL when Kolkata Knight Riders shelled out INR 4.2 crores for him in 2017.
His debut season went perfectly to his plans, and he ended up being the leading wicket-taker for his team in that season. The result of his exploits was that in the next season, he earned a mega-money deal with Royal Challengers Bangalore. The contract earned him INR 7.4 crores per season, but unfortunately, he couldn’t replicate his performances. He was released after just one season, and after a one-year hiatus, Chris Woakes will be back in IPL this season.
Best Bowling Performances of Chris Woakes in IPL
Delhi Capitals bought him in the auction for INR 1.5 crores. Let us have a look at five of his Top Bowling Performance of Chris Woakes in IPL:
5. 2/49 vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Chris Woakes has the knack of being on the more expensive side, but he makes up for his unhealthy economy rate with his ability to pick up wickets at crucial intervals. The match against Sunrisers Hyderabad back in 2017 was one such instance. Batting first, KKR scored 172 runs.
A good start from openers David Warner and Shikhar Dhawan meant that Hyderabad’s middle-order already had a solid foundation to work upon. It was up to KKR now to rattle them, and Woakes did just that by getting Moises Henriques out in the next over after Warner was dismissed. He later dismissed Yuvraj Singh to completely nullify whatever threats Hyderabad’s middle-order had remaining.
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4. 3/36 vs Kolkata Knight Riders
This is the only mention in the list of Top Bowling Performance of Chris Woakes in IPL where Woakes played for RCB, and this time, KKR were his opponents. Bangalore batted first and scored a competitive total of 176. Woakes put the Knights on the back foot in his very first over, when he sent Chris Lynn back to the pavilion.
Later on in the innings, he dismissed uncapped Indian batter Rinku Singh, and then went on to get the wicket of the dangerous Andre Russell. Despite his efforts, Bangalore failed to beat his former side as Sunil Narine and Dinesh Karthik‘s sublime knocks propelled the men in purple and gold towards the two points.
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3. 2/20 vs Kings XI Punjab
Those who believe in luck might come to the conclusion that Chris Woakes has had very little luck in his IPL career after looking at his numbers. Majority of his good spells have ended up in a losing cause, and such was the case when KKR played Kings XI Punjab in 2017.
Batting first, Punjab got off to a fairly decent start. Soon after the dismissal of the openers, it was Woakes’ turn to join the party. His first victim of the match was Australian Shaun Marsh. He later dismissed Swapnil Singh. What was particularly impressive about this spell was, he uncharacteristically maintained very impressive economy rate of just 5 runs per over.
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2. 3/18 vs Rising Pune Supergiant
Following the pattern, this is also a match where Woakes bowled brilliantly but it was of no use as his team lost the game. Batting first, KKR could only manage to muster up 155 runs. Rising Pune Supergiant lost Ajinkya Rahane early on in the chase, but Steve Smith and Rahul Tripathi built a good partnership.
Woakes broke the deadlock by picking up the wicket of Steve Smith. Soon after, he added to his wickets column by bamboozling Manoj Tiwary. His last wicket of the night was Rahul Tripathi, the current KKR member who played a sublime knock of 93 runs.
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1. 3/6 vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Woakes’ best performance came in a match that every KKR fan remembers with fond memories, and every RCB fan looks back on with a bitter taste in their mouths. It was the infamous game where Bangalore were bowled out for just 49 runs.
Batting first, KKR scored only 131 runs. Everyone expected Bangalore to win, but then, history unfolded at a jam-packed Eden Gardens. The dangerous Chris Gayle became the first victim of the dangerous Chris Gayle, and Stuart Binny joined the list in the same over. Woakes’ last wicket of the day came in the form of Samuel Badree.
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