Sanjay Manjrekar has once again found himself in the midst of controversy with his latest analysis, this time for omitting Virat Kohli, Sai Sudharsan, and Aiden Markram from his IPL ‘batters that matter’ list. Renowned for his bold and often contentious remarks, whether in commentary or on social media, Manjrekar gave fans another reason to doubt his impartiality on Saturday. In his latest post, he shared a provocative take on the top performers of IPL 2025, basing his ‘batters that matter’ list solely on current form. However, his decision to leave out Kohli, Sudharsan, and Markram—who are among the top run-scorers this season has left many fans bewildered and questioning his selections.
Virat Kohli’s Top Batters in IPL 2025: Big Runs and Impressive Strike Rates
In terms of batting, there’s only one list that stands out—big runs paired with exceptional strike rates. “Big runs with great SR so far,” Manjrekar posted on social media, revealing a list of batters who have scored a minimum of 250 runs this season, boasting a strike rate of at least 153. The following players made the cut:
When it comes to batting only list that matters.Big runs with great SR so far.
— Sanjay Manjrekar (@sanjaymanjrekar) April 26, 2025
Pooran : 377 runs SR 205
Priyansh Arya : 254 runs SR 202
Shreyas : 263 runs SR 185
Surya : 373 runs SR 167
Buttler : 356 runs SR 166
Mitchell Marsh : 344 runs SR 161
Travis Head: 261 runs SR…
Virat Kohli Notable batters who missed out on Manjrekar’s list include Virat Kohli, Sai Sudharsan, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Aiden Markram. Although all of them are among the top 10 highest run-scorers this season, their strike rates fell just short of Manjrekar’s established criteria, resulting in their exclusion from the ‘batters that matter’ list.
Sudharsan, the current holder of the Orange Cap in IPL 2025, has scored 417 runs at an average of 52.13 and a strike rate of 152.18. Kohli has accumulated 392 runs at a strike rate of 144.11, ranking second on the top run-scorers list. Markram has 326 runs at a strike rate of 150.92. Despite their stellar performances, fans were left perplexed by the absence of these players from Manjrekar’s select list.
