Cheteshwar Pujara, Sanjay Bangar discuss why IPL 2026 has been most explosive season ever

IPL 2026 is already shaping up to be the most explosive season yet, with numbers indicating why it has been an unmissable spectacle for fans. With an overall scoring rate of 9.79 by teams after 35 matches, the run rate in the Powerplay has climbed to 10 - the highest in any season.

Fearless prodigies such as Abhishek Sharma, Priyansh Arya, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, and Prabhsimran Singh, along with established names like Ishan Kishan and Devdutt Padikkal, have been going all out during the field restrictions early on.

This trend is also reflected in the number of 200-plus totals, which has already reached a staggering 29 this season, nearly double the tally for the same period about four years ago. This highlights how the approach to batting in the format has dramatically evolved, making 200-plus totals a staple and giving fans more reasons to stay glued to their screens.

Seven 200-plus totals have been successfully chased down until Match 35, headlined by Punjab Kings going after a massive 265 in scorching Delhi last week. The record for the most 200-plus chases in an IPL 2026 season has already been breached, with SRH (M36 and M41) and RR (M40) also hunting down big targets, taking the number to 10, with 34 matches still to be played.

Consequently, the balls-per-boundary rate is also the best ever at 4.5, dropping further to 3.8 in the Powerplay. Meanwhile, the percentage of runs scored through boundaries continues to rise in the Impact Player era and now stands at 64 per cent - once again the highest for an IPL 2026 season. On 10 occasions already, batters have scored sub-20-ball fifties, two more than the previous season.

Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi share the joint-fastest fifties, both coming off just 15 balls. Suryavanshi features prominently on this list, having achieved the 15-ball fifty feat three times this season - against RCB, CSK, and SRH - while also registering his second century of the tournament against the Pat Cummins-led side in RR’s first game in Jaipur. Among players to have batted at least eight innings in a season, Suryavanshi also boasts the highest strike rate (238.09), surpassing Jake Fraser-McGurk’s 234.04 for DC in the 2024 season.

Commenting on batters dominating the season so far, Cheteshwar Pujara said:

“This season feels different because it’s not just one phase—it’s the entire batting approach that’s evolved. Yes, the Impact Player rule has given teams the freedom to go harder for longer, but the sheer volume of 200-plus totals and, more importantly, how often they’re being chased down is outstanding. Players like Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Priyansh Arya, and Devdutt Padikkal are setting the tone with fearless intent, but it’s the collective mindset across teams that stands out. In today’s game, it’s not about building an innings anymore; it’s about scoring as many runs in the least number of balls possible and hitting as many boundaries while doing that.”

Sanjay Bangar added:

“This has easily been the most explosive IPL 2026 season we’ve seen. The intent from ball one is on another level, especially in the Powerplay, where teams are no longer feeling their way in but going flat out. You look at players like Abhishek Sharma or Vaibhav Suryavanshi—they’re setting the tone straightaway and forcing bowlers onto the back foot. Strike rate is everything now—it’s the currency of T20 batting, and that’s why averages have almost become irrelevant in T20 cricket. All this is possible because of great batting surfaces and excellent work by BCCI curators across the country.”

With the second half of the season underway, bowlers will look to fight back strongly, while batters aim to further establish their supremacy, building up to thrilling, high-octane action across screens this season.