Quietly. Methodically. Without fuss. That's how Anshul Kamboj — Chennai Super Kings' right-arm medium pacer — has gone about claiming the Purple Cap in IPL 2026. With 17 wickets in his bag at a death-overs strike rate that few in the league can match, the 25-year-old from Karnal has emerged as one of the brightest young pace stars in Indian cricket.
👑 Purple Cap Leader IPL 2026: 17 wickets · Best pacer of IPL 2026 so far · Joint-highest with Bhuvneshwar Kumar but holds the cap on better economy. Made history in Nov 2024 — only the third bowler ever to take all 10 wickets in a Ranji innings.
BIOGRAPHY
Full Name: Anshul Kamboj · Born: December 6, 2000, Karnal, Haryana · Age: 25 · Role: Right-arm medium-pace bowler & lower-order batter · IPL Teams: CSK (2025–present), Mumbai Indians (2024) · Auction Price 2026: ₹3.40 crore retention · Test Cap: India #318 (debut July 2025)
Kamboj's domestic journey reads like an old-school cricket story — slow burn, then explosion. Made his Haryana first-class debut in February 2022 against Tripura. Took 7 wickets in 7 matches in the 2022-23 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The breakthrough came with 17 wickets in 10 matches in the 2023-24 Vijay Hazare Trophy, where he played a starring role in Haryana's maiden title.
Then came November 2024 — and history. Playing for Haryana against Kerala in the Ranji Trophy, Kamboj took all 10 wickets in a single innings. Only the third bowler ever to do so in Ranji Trophy history (after Premangsu Chatterjee in 1956-57 and Pradeep Sunderam in 1985-86). The performance turned IPL scouts into bidders.
IPL CAREER STATS
ANSHUL KAMBOJ — IPL CAREER NUMBERS
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Matches | 19+ (debut MI 2024) |
| IPL 2025 Wickets (CSK) | 8 wickets in 8 outings · Avg 21.50 |
| IPL 2025 Best | 3/13 |
| IPL 2026 Wickets | 17 (Purple Cap) |
| IPL 2026 Economy | ~8.56 |
| Highest Bat Score (IPL) | 19* (lower-order utility) |
| Auction Price 2026 | ₹3.40 crore (retention) |
IPL 2026 — PURPLE CAP & CSK'S DEATH KING 🟣
2026 has been the season Anshul became a household name. He took 14 wickets in his first 8 matches and now sits at 17 from 9-10 matches, leading the Purple Cap with the cleanest death-overs profile in the tournament. Joint-highest wicket-taker with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, but Kamboj holds the cap on a better economy — the tie-breaker.
What makes him special is his role: he's CSK's primary death-overs bowler. Where most pacers leak runs in the 17-20 over phase, Kamboj has consistently delivered — yorkers, slower bouncers, a hard length on a sticky pitch. CSK bowling coach Eric Simons recently said: "Anshul went away last season and worked on different angles of approach to the crease, to be more accurate with his yorkers in particular. He's very clear about his tactics. There's no grey area for him."
INDIA DEBUT & TEST CAP #318
Kamboj's first-class form earned him an India A call-up on the shadow tour of England in 2025. Then in July 2025, an injury to Arshdeep Singh prior to the fourth Test in Manchester earned him a maiden India call-up. Within two days of arriving in England, he was handed Test cap #318. He represented India C in the 2024-25 Duleep Trophy, took 16 wickets in 3 matches at an average of 17.12, and was adjudged Player of the Tournament.
WHY HE'S DIFFERENT
Most young Indian pacers come into the IPL trying to bowl 145+ kph. Kamboj does the opposite. He bowls in the high 130s but with seam, swing both ways and surgical accuracy. His high-arm action lets him get bounce on dead pitches; his control lets him bowl yorkers under pressure. He's the kind of bowler captains call on when they need exactly 6 runs defended in the 19th over.
His IPL 2025 figures (8 wickets in 8 games) didn't dazzle. But the work he put in over the 2024-25 domestic season — the 10-fer in Ranji, the Duleep Player of the Tournament, the Test debut — laid the foundation for IPL 2026. This is what a planned breakout looks like.
OUTLOOK FOR THE PLAYOFFS
CSK sit on 8 points heading into Match 48 vs DC tonight — a must-win. If they qualify, Kamboj's death-overs work will be the single biggest reason. With 5 league matches still to play, he's on track for 22-25 wickets — which would be Purple Cap-winning territory in any season. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (also 17), Eshan Malinga (14) and Prince Yadav (13) are all chasing — but Kamboj's economy gives him the edge.
