Cricket
Best Partnership in IPL
Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers hold the record for the best partnership in IPL history. 229 runs between them in 2016 against Gujarat Lions is the best partnership in IPL history.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is one of the top-ranked professional cricket leagues in the world. Players from all over the world participate in this 10-team competition and make it an exciting spectacle. In the 16 seasons played so far, the tournament has witnessed many excellent partnerships on the field between some of the best batters the game has witnessed. Here we will discuss the best partnerships in IPL history.
Highest Partnership in IPL
By Runs
| BATTERS | RUNS | WICKET | OPPONENT | YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VIRAT KOHLI-AB DE VILLIERS (RCB) | 229 | 2ND | GUJARAT LIONS | 2016 |
| VIRAT KOHLI-AB DE VILLERS (RCB) | 215* | 2ND | MUMBAI INDIANS | 2015 |
| KL RAHUL-QUINTON DE KOCK (LSG) | 210* | 1ST | KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS | 2022 |
| SHAUN MARSH-ADAM GILCHRIST (KXIP) | 206 | 2ND | ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE | 2011 |
| VIRAT KOHLI-CHRIS GAYLE (RCB) | 204* | 2ND | DELHI DAREDEVILS | 2012 |
| DAVID WARNER-NAMAN OJHA (DD) | 189* | 2ND | DECCAN CHARGERS | 2012 |
| DAVID WARNER-JONNY BAIRSTOW (SRH) | 185 | 1ST | ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE | 2019 |
| CHRIS LYNN-GAUTAM GAMBHIR (KKR) | 184* | 1ST | GUJARAT LIONS | 2017 |
| KL RAHUL-MAYANK AGARWAL (KXIP) | 183 | 1ST | RAJASTHAN ROYALS | 2020 |
| RUTURAJ GAIKWAD-DEVON CONWAY (CSK) | 182 | 1ST | SUNRISERS HYDERABAD | 2022 |
Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers have the top partnership in IPL to their name. The duo added 229 runs for the 2nd wicket against Gujarat Lions in 2016 going past their record of unbeaten 215 runs for the same wicket in the previous year against Mumbai Indians. Kohli finds his name in the list of highest IPL partnerships again having an unbeaten 204-run partnership with Chris Gayle for the 2nd wicket against the Daredevils in 2012.
Lucknow Super Giants captain KL Rahul added 210 for the opening wicket with Quinton de Kock without a dent which is the best opening partnership in IPL history. Before them, the record was held by Sunrisers Hyderabad’s David Warner and Jonny Bairstow who in a tremendous hitting partnership, added 185 against RCB in 2019. The highest unbeaten first wicket stand in IPL record was previously held by KKR’s former captain Gautam Gambhir and Chris Lynn with the duo adding 184 against Lions in 2017.
In the 2011 IPL, the Australian pair of Shaun Marsh and Adam Gilchrist, playing for Kings XI Punjab scored the best partnership in IPL of that time. Gilchrist and Marsh became the first pair to add more than 200 runs for any wicket with a stand of 206 runs against RCB. The Daredevils pair of David Warner and Naman Ojha got close to breaching the 200-run mark but could add 189 unbeaten runs as they were chasing 188 and achieved the target with 20 balls to spare.
The Karnataka pair of KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal also get a mention in the list of longest partnership in IPL with their 183-run opening stand for Kings XI Punjab against Rajasthan Royals in 2020. Agarwal ended up hitting his fastest IPL century in the same innings. The successful opening pair of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway added 182 for the Chennai Super Kings against Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2022. Conway remained unbeaten on 85 but Gaikwad was unlucky to miss his hundred by just 1 run as CSK finished the innings at 202/2.
HIGHEST PARTNERSHIP IN IPL
BY WICKETS
| WICKET | BATTERS | RUNS | AGAINST | YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1ST | KL RAHUL-QUINTON DE KOCK (LSG) | 210* | KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS | 2022 |
| 2ND | VIRAT KOHLI-AB DE VILLIERS (RCB) | 229 | GUJARAT LIONS | 2016 |
| 3RD | ROBIN UTHAPPA-SHIVAM DUBE (CSK) | 165 | ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE | 2022 |
| 4TH | SHIMRON HETMYER-GURKEERAT SINGH MANN (RCB) | 144 | SUNRISERS HYDERABAD | 2019 |
| 5TH | SHAKIB AL HASAN-YUSUF PATHAN (KKR) | 134* | GUJARAT LIONS | 2016 |
| 6TH | AMBATI RAYUDU-KIERON POLLARD (MI) | 122* | ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE | 2012 |
| 7TH | JAGADEESHA SUCHITH-HARBHAJAN SINGH (MI) | 100 | KINGS XI PUNJAB | 2015 |
| 8TH | BRAD HODGE-JAMES FAULKNER (RR) | 69 | MUMBAI INDIANS | 2014 |
| 9TH | RASHID KHAN-ALZARRI JOSEPH (GT) | 88* | MUMBAI INDIANS | 2023 |
| 10TH | MOHIT RATHEE-SHIKHAR DHAWAN (PK) | 55* | SUNRISERS HYDERABAD | 2023 |
The Virat-ABD partnership of 229 runs is the highest partnership in Indian Premier League history. The duo scored 229 runs for the second wicket breaking their own record of the biggest T20 partnership ever. Their overall T20 record was overhauled in 2019 by Afghanistan’s Hazratullah Zazai and Usman Ghani as their partnership totalled 236 runs but Kohli and ABD’s record remains in the IPL.
The 229-run Virat-ABD partnership against Gujarat Lions is also the highest for the 2nd wicket in IPL and overall T20s being the 2nd highest partnership for any wicket in T20 cricket. Kohli and ABD have shared 4 partnerships of 150 runs or more in the Indian Premier League making them one of the best batting partners the tournament has seen.
When it comes to the best opening partnership in IPL, the Lucknow Super Giants duo of wicketkeepers KL Rahul and Quinton de Kock own the record with a tremendous unbeaten 210-run stand against Kolkata Knight Riders in 2022. LSG totalled 210/0 in their 20 overs and won the game by a bare margin of 2 runs.
Chennai Super Kings’ right-hand – left-hand pair of Robin Uthappa and Shivam Dube added 165 runs against RCB in the 2022 edition for the 3rd Wicket. Shimron Hetmyer and Gurkeerat Singh Mann for the Royal Challengers. The duo added 144 runs against Sunrisers Hyderabad after the team lost 3 wickets for 20 while chasing 176 runs for the 4th Wicket.
The biggest partnership in IPL for the 5th wicket was between Shakib Al Hasan and Yusuf Pathan by KKR against Gujarat Lions in 2016. Mumbai Indian’s Ambati Rayudu and Kieron Pollard put up the best IPL partnership for the 6th wicket by scoring 122 runs in 2012.
Mumbai Indians’ Jagadeesha Suchith and Harbhajan Singh were involved in one of the most exciting lower-order batting partnerships in IPL 2015 against Kings XI Punjab. With 119 needed in 38 balls, Harbhajan almost did the unthinkable blasting 64 in just 24 deliveries and put a 100-run partnership the best IPL partnership for the 7th wicket.
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Dillip has over two decades of experience in creating sports content. As the Sports Editor of SportsBoom, Dillip brings in a wealth of experience and expertise to the role. Dillip has worked with leading sports broadcasters and sports web content portals in Asia. He is an adept storyteller and has a special liking for data stories. He has a keen interest in data analysis and uncovering insights from large datasets. He loves to tell the story with rich and compelling data visualisation.