DP World ILT20 Season 5 – 2026

ILT20 2026 Orange Cap

All time batting leaders, season by season run scoring records and the ILT20 Season 5 Orange Cap race from 22 November 2026.

ILT20 Orange Cap: All Time Records and Season 5 Race

The ILT20 Orange Cap is awarded to the leading run scorer across the tournament. In ILT20, the equivalent award is officially called the Green Belt (Best Batter), but the Orange Cap is the most widely used term among fans and cricket media for tracking the run scoring leaderboard throughout the season.

Alex Hales holds the all time ILT20 run scoring record with 1,156 runs across Seasons 1 to 3 for Desert Vipers, including nine fifties and one century (110 runs, the highest individual score in ILT20 history). James Vince holds the record for most fifties in tournament history with 10 half centuries across 1,055 total runs for Gulf Giants. Nicholas Pooran leads the all time sixes chart with 71 maximums and averages 45.90 across 1,010 runs for MI Emirates. Season 5 Orange Cap standings update here from 22 November 2026 after every completed match.

Alex Hales scored 1,156 runs across Seasons 1 to 3 and holds the highest individual score in ILT20 history with 110 runs for Desert Vipers in Season 1. He moved to Abu Dhabi Knight Riders for Season 4 and remains the benchmark every Orange Cap contender in Season 5 is measured against.
James Vince holds the all time record for most fifties in ILT20 history with 10 half centuries across 1,055 total runs for Gulf Giants. His combination of volume and consistency across multiple seasons makes him the most reliable middle-order performer the tournament has produced.
Nicholas Pooran averages 45.90 across 1,010 runs and holds the all time sixes record of 71 for MI Emirates. His average is the highest of any player who has scored 500 or more runs in ILT20 history, making him the most consistent power scorer the tournament has seen.
Muhammad Waseem is the leading UAE domestic batter in ILT20 history with 871 runs and 55 sixes, the third highest six-hitting total in the tournament. He also leads all fielders with 20 catches and won the Blue Belt (Best UAE Player) award for the fourth consecutive season in Season 4.

ILT20 Best Batter Award: Season by Season Winners

These are the confirmed Best Batter (Green Belt) award winners from each completed ILT20 season, along with their key batting performances that season:

Season 1 (2023) Gulf Giants won the title. Alex Hales scored 110 runs in one innings, the highest individual score in ILT20 history, and led the run scoring charts for Desert Vipers. James Vince and Nicholas Pooran both had strong campaigns in the inaugural season.
Season 2 (2024) MI Emirates won the title, defeating Dubai Capitals in the final. The MI Emirates batting lineup was the most dominant in the tournament, posting several 200-plus totals including 241 for 3 against Desert Vipers, the highest team total in ILT20 history.
Season 3 (2025) Dubai Capitals won the title, defeating Desert Vipers in the final. Rovman Powell (63 off 38) and Sikandar Raza (34 off 12) were the key batting performers in the final. Tom Banton scored 105 and 102 not out in the league stage, two of the highest individual innings that season.
Season 4 (2025-26) Desert Vipers won the title, defeating MI Emirates by 46 runs in the final on 4 January 2026. Sam Curran won the Green Belt (Best Batter) award after finishing the tournament with 397 runs including three fifties, plus seven wickets and 10 catches. He scored an unbeaten 74 off 51 balls in the final.

Season 5 Orange Cap standings will update here from 22 November 2026 after every completed match through to the final on 20 December 2026 at Dubai International Stadium.

ILT20 Orange Cap Batting Statistics Tracked During Season 5

The Orange Cap leaderboard tracks multiple batting statistics throughout ILT20 Season 5. Here is what each column in the standings table measures and why it matters:

Total runs scored across all matches played is the primary stat that determines the Orange Cap holder. Every innings in every fixture from 22 November to 20 December 2026 counts, including all four playoff matches at Dubai International Stadium.
Strike rate shows how many runs the batter scores per 100 balls. In ILT20, where Sharjah’s short boundaries inflate totals and Abu Dhabi’s slower surface deflates them, strike rate provides a fairer picture of batting impact than total runs alone.
Batting average is calculated as total runs divided by number of dismissals. Nicholas Pooran’s all time average of 45.90 across 1,010 runs is the benchmark. A high average alongside a high strike rate is the combination that identifies the Orange Cap’s most complete contenders.
Fifties and centuries confirm that the batter converts starts into significant innings. James Vince’s all time record of 10 fifties and Alex Hales’s record century of 110 runs set the standard for what consistent Orange Cap-level batting looks like across a full tournament.
Sixes and boundaries show the batter’s boundary-hitting capacity. Nicholas Pooran’s all time record of 71 sixes reflects the power hitting contribution that most strongly influences match results in the tournament’s highest-scoring phases.

Why Opening Batters Lead the ILT20 Orange Cap Race

Every completed ILT20 season has confirmed that top-order batters dominate the run scoring leaderboard. Alex Hales (1,156 runs), James Vince (1,055 runs), and Nicholas Pooran (1,010 runs) are the all time top three, and all three bat in the top four of their respective lineups. The structural reason is straightforward: openers and top-order batters face more deliveries than anyone else across a full tournament.

Powerplay field restrictions in overs 1 to 6 limit fielders on the boundary, giving openers more scoring opportunities per ball than middle-order batters who arrive later in the innings when the field has spread. An opener who bats through the powerplay and into the middle overs in most matches accumulates runs at a rate that finishers cannot match across 30 league games.
Tom Kohler-Cadmore’s unbeaten 106 for Sharjah Warriors in Season 1 and Tom Banton’s 105 and 102 not out for MI Emirates in Season 3 are all top-order innings. The only time a lower-order batter has consistently challenged for the batting lead is when they bat at number five or six in a team that regularly collapses early, forcing them to face extended time at the crease.
Playoff innings count toward the Season 5 Orange Cap. Sam Curran’s 74 not out in the Season 4 final confirms that knockout performances carry real weight in the final standings. A batter who leads the league stage but scores poorly in the playoffs can be overtaken by a rival who saves their best innings for the biggest matches.

How UAE Venues Affect ILT20 Orange Cap Totals

The three ILT20 venues produce significantly different run scoring environments. A batter’s final Orange Cap total in Season 5 will be directly influenced by how many matches they play at each venue across the full tournament window from 22 November to 20 December 2026.

Sharjah Cricket Stadium has the shortest boundaries of the three ILT20 venues and consistently produces the highest team totals in the tournament. The 200 run mark has been crossed 12 times in ILT20 history, with Sharjah matches accounting for the majority of those high-scoring games. Batters who play multiple matches at Sharjah accumulate Orange Cap runs faster than at any other venue in the tournament.
Dubai International Cricket Stadium produces the most balanced batting and bowling conditions across the three ILT20 venues. Dew in the second innings of night matches makes the ball harder to grip from around the 12th over onward, which gives second innings batters a clear advantage in the final overs. Dubai hosts all four playoff fixtures and the Season 5 final, so the Orange Cap race reaches its conclusion under Dubai conditions.
Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi is the slowest surface of the three ILT20 venues and consistently produces the lowest scoring totals. Spin bowlers get more assistance here than at Dubai or Sharjah, and batters who rely on pure power hitting tend to score below their season average at this ground. Technically strong batters who can play spin and rotate strike effectively perform better at Abu Dhabi than power hitters who depend on pace to time their shots.

FAQs: ILT20 2026 Orange Cap

What is the ILT20 Orange Cap and who holds the all time record?

The ILT20 Orange Cap tracks the leading run scorer of the tournament. The official ILT20 award for the best batter is called the Green Belt, but Orange Cap is the widely used term for the run scoring leaderboard. Alex Hales holds the all time ILT20 run scoring record with 1,156 runs across Seasons 1 to 3 for Desert Vipers, including nine fifties and one century of 110 runs, the highest individual score in tournament history. James Vince holds the record for most fifties with 10 half centuries, and Nicholas Pooran holds the record for most sixes with 71 maximums across his 1,010 runs for MI Emirates.

Who won the ILT20 Best Batter award in Season 4?

Sam Curran of Desert Vipers won the Green Belt (Best Batter) award in ILT20 Season 4. He finished the tournament with 397 runs including three fifties, plus seven wickets and 10 catches, making him an all-round match winner. His unbeaten 74 off 51 balls in the final at Dubai International Stadium on 4 January 2026 powered Desert Vipers to 182 for 4, which proved more than enough as they dismissed MI Emirates for 136 to win the title by 46 runs.

Do playoff innings count toward the ILT20 Orange Cap?

Yes. All four playoff matches in ILT20 Season 5, including Qualifier 1, the Eliminator, Qualifier 2, and the final on 20 December 2026, count toward the Orange Cap total. A batter can overtake the league stage leader by scoring big in the knockout rounds. Sam Curran’s Best Batter award in Season 4 was significantly boosted by his final innings of 74 not out, which is the most high-profile example of a player consolidating their batting award with a match-winning knockout performance.

Which ILT20 venue produces the most Orange Cap runs?

Sharjah Cricket Stadium produces the most runs in ILT20 history. It has the shortest boundaries of the three venues and the 200 run mark has been crossed more times at Sharjah than at Dubai or Abu Dhabi across all four completed seasons. Nicholas Pooran’s all time record of 71 sixes was built significantly on his Sharjah performances. For Season 5 Orange Cap contenders, playing multiple fixtures at Sharjah is a structural advantage in the run scoring race.

When does ILT20 Season 5 start and when will Orange Cap standings update?

ILT20 Season 5 starts on 22 November 2026 and runs until the final on 20 December 2026 at Dubai International Stadium. Orange Cap standings will update here after every completed match across all 34 fixtures. The full Season 5 squad lists, which will determine which batters are available for each franchise, are expected to be confirmed before mid-November 2026 following the player auction or draft process.