IPL Orange Cap Winners: Complete List From 2008 to 2026

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was the IPL Orange Cap winner in 2026, finishing the season with 776 runs for Rajasthan Royals. He joined a list that began with Shaun Marsh in 2008 and includes repeat winners such as David Warner, Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli. The Orange Cap is awarded to the batter with the most runs in an IPL season, making it one of the clearest markers of sustained batting performance across the tournament.

IPL Orange Cap winners by season

According to ESPNcricinfo, the following players finished as the leading run-scorers in each IPL season from 2008 through 2026.

Season	Orange Cap winner	Team	Runs
2008	Shaun Marsh	Kings XI Punjab	616
2009	Matthew Hayden	Chennai Super Kings	572
2010	Sachin Tendulkar	Mumbai Indians	618
2011	Chris Gayle	Royal Challengers Bangalore	608
2012	Chris Gayle	Royal Challengers Bangalore	733
2013	Michael Hussey	Chennai Super Kings	733
2014	Robin Uthappa	Kolkata Knight Riders	660
2015	David Warner	Sunrisers Hyderabad	562
2016	Virat Kohli	Royal Challengers Bangalore	973
2017	David Warner	Sunrisers Hyderabad	641
2018	Kane Williamson	Sunrisers Hyderabad	735
2019	David Warner	Sunrisers Hyderabad	692
2020	KL Rahul	Kings XI Punjab	670
2021	Ruturaj Gaikwad	Chennai Super Kings	635
2022	Jos Buttler	Rajasthan Royals	863
2023	Shubman Gill	Gujarat Titans	890
2024	Virat Kohli	Royal Challengers Bengaluru	741
2025	B Sai Sudharsan	Gujarat Titans	759
2026	Vaibhav Sooryavanshi	Rajasthan Royals	776

How the Orange Cap works

The Orange Cap recognises the leading run-scorer over a full IPL season rather than the player with the highest score in a single innings. It was introduced on 25 April 2008, shortly after the inaugural IPL began. During the tournament, the batter at the top of the run-scoring chart wears the cap while fielding; the season’s final leading scorer receives the award after the final.

That format gives the award a different meaning from a one-off match award. A batter must produce runs repeatedly, often across different venues and against changing bowling attacks, to remain at the top of the chart. It also means that a player can lead midway through the competition but lose the Orange Cap if another batter finishes the season more strongly.

For readers assessing batting form during a live tournament, the season-long run chart is useful alongside expected playing XIs, venue conditions and recent roles in the batting order. Those comparisons can help when considering the best team for dream11 today match without treating the Orange Cap standings as the only measure of a player’s likely impact.

The leading records in Orange Cap history

David Warner has won the Orange Cap three times: in 2015, 2017 and 2019, all while representing Sunrisers Hyderabad. No other player has won it on as many occasions in the 2008-2026 list. His three victories show the value of repeatable production, particularly for an opening batter who had regular opportunities to set the pace of an innings.

Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli each won the award twice. Gayle did so in consecutive seasons, leading the chart for Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2011 and 2012. Kohli’s wins came eight years apart, with his 2016 season for Royal Challengers Bangalore followed by a 2024 triumph for Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The team name changed over that period, but both entries belong to the same franchise’s Orange Cap history.

Kohli’s 2016 benchmark

Kohli’s 973 runs in the 2016 IPL remain the highest tally by an Orange Cap winner in a single season. The total stands well clear of other high-scoring winning campaigns in the available record, including Shubman Gill’s 890 runs in 2023 and Jos Buttler’s 863 in 2022.

The scale of that 2016 total matters because an Orange Cap contest usually depends on consistency rather than one exceptional innings. A player needs enough matches, enough time at the crease and a run of meaningful scores to accumulate a winning total. Kohli’s 973-run campaign remains the standard against which later Orange Cap seasons can be compared.

Consecutive winners and shared run totals

Gayle was the first player to win consecutive Orange Caps, taking the award in 2011 and 2012. His tally rose from 608 runs in 2011 to 733 in 2012. The latter total was matched by Michael Hussey in 2013, although they achieved it in separate IPL seasons for different teams.

A matching tally across seasons does not make the campaigns identical. The tournament context, number of matches and a player’s role can vary. Still, the 733-run mark provides a useful reference point in the Orange Cap timeline: it was achieved by Gayle for Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2012 and Hussey for Chennai Super Kings in 2013.

Notable phases in the winners list

The first three seasons produced three different winners from three different teams. Marsh began the story with 616 runs for Kings XI Punjab in 2008, Hayden followed with 572 for Chennai Super Kings in 2009, and Tendulkar scored 618 for Mumbai Indians in 2010. This early sequence captured the breadth of batting talent present in the competition from its opening years.

From 2011, repeated winners became more prominent. Gayle took back-to-back caps, while Warner won three times between 2015 and 2019. Sunrisers Hyderabad featured strongly in that period: Warner won in 2015, 2017 and 2019, while Kane Williamson topped the run list for the team in 2018. That gave the franchise four Orange Cap seasons across five editions.

The 2020s have continued to produce both established names and newer winners. KL Rahul led in 2020, Ruturaj Gaikwad in 2021, Buttler in 2022, Gill in 2023, Kohli in 2024, Sai Sudharsan in 2025 and Sooryavanshi in 2026. No player won consecutive caps in this seven-season stretch, underlining how quickly the competition for runs can change.

The youngest recent winners

Sai Sudharsan became the youngest Orange Cap winner at the time when he topped the 2025 IPL chart with 759 runs for Gujarat Titans. Olympics.com noted that he was 23 years and 237 days old when he achieved the feat. His record lasted one season.

Sooryavanshi then became the youngest Orange Cap winner after his 2026 season for Rajasthan Royals. He was 15 years and 65 days old and scored 776 runs in 16 matches, according to Olympics.com. His win added a striking new chapter to an honours list previously shaped largely by established international batters and experienced IPL regulars.

Why the Orange Cap remains significant

An Orange Cap is not automatically a measure of team success, because the award is based on individual runs rather than results. Yet its winners often reflect the batters who defined an IPL season through volume, consistency and the ability to handle pressure across several matches. Opening batters have featured frequently, but the list also demonstrates that a reliable run-maker can lead the chart regardless of reputation or experience.

From Marsh’s 616 runs in 2008 to Sooryavanshi’s 776 in 2026, the Orange Cap winners list tracks nearly two decades of IPL batting excellence. Kohli’s 973-run season remains the record, Warner remains the most frequent winner, and every new season offers another opportunity for a batter to reshape the history of the award.