60 matches, 120 fielders were involved in taking 475 catches in the 2018 season of Indian Premier League (IPL) — most in a single season of 8 teams, overall 4th most and highest since 2013. However, it is the catches dropped that are noticed more than catches successfully taken. Obviously, the list of dropped catches is way lesser than catches pouched but those crucial drops often change the course of the match.
Meanwhile, with another season of IPL done and dusted with another exciting and memorable season, here we look at some astonishing stats regarding dropped catches from this edition.
A total of 110 catches dropped from 60 matches played this season. This means, 1.83 catches dropped at an average per IPL game and almost 2 per match. However, there have been many games where no dropped catches were recorded because of some brilliant discipline in fielding from both the sides. 17 out of 60 matches recorded no catches being dropped in this season. This means the average dropped matches per match will be 2.34.
Starting with team-wise, the team which dropped most catches throughout the season is Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and the least is Delhi Daredevils. Interestingly, both KKR and SRH were the team in top three, while DD at the bottom but this certainly gives the reality check.
| Team | Catches Taken | Catches Dropped | Drop % |
| KKR | 63 | 18 | 22.22 |
| SRH | 64 | 18 | 21.95 |
| CSK | 69 | 14 | 16.87 |
| RR | 57 | 14 | 19.72 |
| KXIP | 54 | 12 | 18.18 |
| MI | 67 | 12 | 15.19 |
| RCB | 49 | 12 | 19.67 |
| DD | 52 | 10 | 16.13 |
However, going by catches dropped percentage, KKR again tops the chart and DD once again surprises everyone with their 2nd lowest rank in the list, which is a big boost for them.
Although, one can say that DD played lesser matches as compared to top four teams but that is same for all bottom four teams. However, it gives the moral victory to DD on their fielding. And how can one forget the catch of Trent Boult? In addition, DD surprises again by having the least ratio of catches dropped per match and KKR and SRH tops the chart here too.
| Team | Matches | Catches Dropped | Drops per match |
| KKR | 16 | 18 | 1.13 |
| SRH | 17 | 18 | 1.06 |
| RR | 15 | 14 | 0.93 |
| CSK | 16 | 14 | 0.88 |
| KXIP | 14 | 12 | 0.86 |
| MI | 14 | 12 | 0.86 |
| RCB | 14 | 12 | 0.86 |
| DD | 14 | 10 | 0.71 |
Moving from teams to the bowler, Rashid Khan, who is the 2nd highest wicket-taker of the season; is at the top in terms catches getting dropped on any bowler’s bowling. Among pacers, it is U19 champions bowler Shivam Mavi and Siddarth Kaul are the most unlucky find of the year. Imagine had they hanged on to most of those dropped catches off Rashid’s bowling? The tally which he could have accumulated in this IPL!
| Bowler | Team | Caught wicket | Drops |
| Rashid Khan | SRH | 8 | 6 |
| Shivam Mavi | KKR | 3 | 5 |
| Siddarth Kaul | SRH | 15 | 5 |
| Jasprit Bumrah | MI | 15 | 4 |
| Kuldeep Yadav | KKR | 13 | 4 |
Now, time to take a look at the fielder who dropped the most catches this year is interestingly India’s one of the best fielder’s name is at the second place. Among the wicketkeepers, Dinesh Karthik and Wriddhiman Saha have dropped the most — 3 each.
Not to forget that Saha dropped these many catches in lesser matches as compared to Karthik, which shows that he has not been up to the mark this season. This is a surprising stat considering Saha is generally regarded as the most consistent keeper in the country.
| Fielder | Team | Catches taken | Drops |
| Nitish Rana | KKR | 2 | 5 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | CSK | 11 | 4 |
| Deepak Hooda | SRH | 3 | 3 |
| Dinesh Karthik | KKR | 14 | 3 |
| Ishan Kishan | MI | 9 | 3 |
| Mujeeb Ur Rahman | KXIP | 1 | 3 |
| Rahul Tripathi | RR | 4 | 3 |
| Virat Kohli | RCB | 8 | 3 |
| Wriddhiman Saha | SRH | 5 | 3 |
After covering teams, bowlers, fielders and wicketkeepers, now moving to batsmen who got dropped most catches throughout the year. In this list, DD’s Shreyas Iyer has earned the top spot. The list also features some of the top batsmen of the year such as Chris Lynn, Suryakumar Yadav and Evin Lewis.
| Batsman | Team | Caught out | Dropped |
| Shreyas Iyer | DD | 8 | 6 |
| Chris Lynn | KKR | 9 | 5 |
| Suryakumar Yadav | MI | 11 | 5 |
| Evin Lewis | MI | 8 | 4 |
Going by the opposition, it is CSK the champion team, against whom players have dropped the most in this IPL — 18. The second most spot for most catches dropped against an opponent is jointly held by KKR, MI and runners-up team SRH.
Last but not the least, match wise, the record is of 6 dropped catches in the 25th match of this season which was between KKR and KXIP.
Note: Numbers accurate up to May 27, 2018
