We have been able to witness some of the most magnificent pieces of bowling in the IPL. Many of the modern great bowlers have been the product of their magnificent performances in their IPL careers. Bowling, as we all know, is as important as batting, and on many occasions, many teams depend upon their bowling attack more than their batting capabilities. It is a well-accepted fact that a good and deadly bowling attack can win you more matches than a lethal batting attack.

1. Alzarri Joseph (6/12)

Alzarri Joseph is the current holder of the most wickets in a single match. This came against SRH in the year 2019. Joseph’s spell drowned the game in MI’s favour and destroyed the entire batting line-up of SRH. Joseph is still playing in the IPL now with the Gujarat Titans, and he again helped the Titans win the IPL campaign last year.

2. Ravichandran Ashwin (3/16)

It was the final of the IPL 2011. Even though in those finals CSK had placed the mountainous target of 205 against RCB, RCB was still in the game, as it was Chris Gayle who had been on top of his game and held the ability to change the game, but it was also Ashwin on one end who took 3 wickets, including Gayle’s on a duck in the very first over.

3. Kolkata Knight Riders

This time an entire team is to be considered, as the performance that came out was the result of the entire team's effort and not just one single bowler. This was against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the year 2017 when defending just the paltry score of 131, the KKR bowlers bowled out the entire RCB team in just under 50 runs. This 49-run total for RCB remains the lowest total of all time in the IPL.

4. Rashid Khan (3/19)

The three-wicket hauls might not surprise you too much, especially with the bowling capabilities of Rashid Khan, but the wickets came under enormous pressure as the match was the Qualifier 2 of 2018 against KKR. Playing for SRH, Rashid had already played a knock with the bat, but his bowling helped the team win the game. Already, the fire 30 that Rashid made had a huge impact on SRH, but this bowling performance just kept the entire game in their hands and gave them a ticket to the finals.

5. Muttiah Muralitharan (2/8)

Taking just two wickets in a game has become pretty much normal business for any strike bowler. Muralitharan’s spell came in the 57th game of IPL 2009, where CSK defended the lowest total ever in IPL history. This iconic win came when it was a do-or-die situation for CSK to qualify for the playoffs. Muralitharan gave away just 8 runs in 4 overs, one of the most economical spells in the history of the IPL. This performance also earned him the Man of the Match award for this match and gave CSK the ticket to qualify for the playoffs.

6. Sunrisers Hyderabad

In defending the score of 118 against the mighty powerhouse of the Mumbai Indians. The match supposedly ended when Hyderabad was only able to reach 118. It was the Hyderabad bowling unit in 2018 that was considered the best of that season. All the bowlers gave up runs with an economy rate of less than 6 and fractured the entire batting unit of the Mumbai Indians. Except for Krunal Pandya and Surya, no batter made it to double figures. In the end, Mumbai collapsed with just a score of 87.

7. Rashid Khan (4/24)

In 2022, the race was on to claim the top spot on the league table. It was a match between two newcomers to the IPL, Lucknow and Gujarat. Gujarat was only able to reach a score of 144. Lucknow, with a batting line-up consisting of K L Rahul and Quinton Decock, was expected to easily win the match. Rashid Khan’s continuous wicket-taking abilities finished the match, which ended in Gujarat’s favour. With Lucknow getting all out for just a score of 82.

8. Harshal Patel (5/27)

It was the match between the Mumbai Indians and the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Mumbai was in a comfortable position right up to the 16th over of the match. RCB required something special to win the match, and something special was coming in the form of Harshal Patel. The purple cap holder of IPL 2021 displayed his magic through this spell. He scalped the entire Mumbai middle order and bowled a stellar 20th over. In the death overs, he bowled with an economy of less than 7. This was enough for Mumbai to lose the match.

9. Yusuf Pathan (3/22)

It was the first final of the IPL between the Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings. Chennai, batting first, got off to an explosive start with openers giving a solid start. It was the all-around performance of Yusuf Pathan that fractured the CSK batting order by picking the wickets of Parthiv Patel and the explosive important wicket of Albie Morkel, who looked aggressive. If it were not for MS Dhoni’s last-minute shots, which led CSK to go above 160, Even produced a healthy inning with a bat of 56 and ultimately became the first man of the match in the finals of an IPL. Yusuf Pathan won the finals for the Rajasthan Royals in the first-ever IPL final.

10. Mumbai Indians

With a small total on board of just 139. The Mumbai Indians, playing against their biggest foe, the Chennai Super Kings, required something special to get back in the match against the batting powerhouse line-up of CSK. With the line-up, we had Michael Hussey, Dwayne Bravo, Suresh Raina, and MS Dhoni. Mumbai's bowling with pacers Lasith Malinga and Michael Johnson pulled apart the CSK batting line-up. Both shared five wickets between them and produced a lethal spell at the Wankhede Stadium. This hazardous bowling against CSK led the MI to win the match and restricted the CSK batting to just 79 all out.