According to the general standards, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Rashid Khan, and Varun Chakaravarthy are different class bowlers in the Indian Premier League. However, Harshal Patel has silently surpassed them all in a crucial metric-wickets in the last five seasons.

 

Only Bumrah among this elite group has been on the sidelines due to injury. But Harshal's greater number of games played does not give him the edge: he has not played many matches comparatively. Rather, he has most digits in the tally of wickets. On the other hand, unlike Bumrah, Arshdeep, Chakaravarthy, or Rashid, Harshal has no fixed home ground. Since 2021, he represented three different franchises: Royal Challengers Bengaluru (2021–2023), Punjab Kings (2024), and currently, Sunrisers Hyderabad.

 

That is not to say that Harshal is more gifted. He has not played for India since January 2023. But the footprint he leaves in the IPL is hard to avoid. With two Purple Caps missed under his belt (2021 and 2024), he joins an elite club with only Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Dwayne Bravo included.

 

In this present day T20 match, where most of it has gone by the batters, the teams that have fine bowlers usually have been at an advantage. Harshal joins that company. No bowler out of the top 50 wicket-takers list since 2021 has a better ratio of wickets-per-match than him.

 

Most wickets in IPL since 2021:

 

Bowler Innings Wickets Wicket per Match Average Economy Strike Rate

Harshal Patel	65	102	1.56	20.03	8.77	13.6
Yuzvendra Chahal	69	93	1.34	22.80	8.22	16.6
Rashid Khan	67	80	1.19	24.91	7.65	19.5
Avesh Khan	61	77	1.26	25.38	8.80	17.2
Arshdeep Singh	62	75	1.20	26.33	8.91	17.7

 

Bumrah has gained the reputation that batters usually play him out cautiously, and Arshdeep is almost there, being the most successful T20I pacer from India. Harshal, however, is rarely mentioned due to the fact that he hardly bowls powerplay overs. 

 

 

Since 2021, Harshal has bowled only 18.1 powerplay overs, which is a number I dare say most fast bowlers surpass in a single season. Harshal is instead known for his skills in the middle and death overs, having extended his influence into 214.4 overs during the period from 7 to 20.

 

This role has generally been taken for granted until now; Harshal's work-take the wickets at fine intervals-now becomes much more valuable since aggressive batting becomes the order of the day. He's not built for economy; he is made to break partnerships. Overall, he could end being more impacting than compared to the likes of Bumrah, Rashid, or Arshdeep, even if he doesn't pace as they do or bring in that kind of flair or intimidation aspect.