The fans could not have asked for a better start to the twelfth edition of the Indian Premier League. Defending champions Chennai Super Kings will take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in a star-studded clash that will start the competition on March 23. While MS Dhoni will lead the Chennai-based outfit, Virat Kohli will be donning the captain’s hat for the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Some stars who will be in action in the upcoming tournament-opener are Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo, Suresh Raina, AB de Villiers, Ambati Rayudu and others.
And while the fans are looking ahead to a thrilling clash this week, there will be a personal battle going on between Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina. The two batsmen are currently vying to become the first player to score 5000 runs in the IPL. Raina currently leads the run-scoring chart with 4,985 runs in 172 innings at an average of 34.37 with one century and 35 half-centuries. On the other hand, Kohli is breathing down Raina’s neck at the second place. The India skipper has so far scored 4,948 runs in 155 IPL innings at an average of 38.35 with four centuries and 34 half-centuries.
With just 37 runs separating the two and the 5,000-run mark within touching distance, both the players will have a big chance to create history on the very first day of the IPL.
It should be noted that Kohli was the first to score 4,000 runs in IPL while Raina was the first to 2,000 and 3,000 runs in the league. Former Australia wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist was the first player to score 1,000 runs in IPL.
Here is a list showing the top run-scorers in the history of IPL:
| Player | Runs |
| Suresh Raina | 4985 |
| Virat Kohli | 4948 |
| Rohit Sharma | 4493 |
| Gautam Gambhir | 4217 |
| Robin Uthappa | 4086 |
| Shikhar Dhawan | 4058 |
| MS Dhoni | 4016 |
| David Warner | 4014 |
| Chris Gayle | 3994 |
| AB de Villiers | 3953 |
Meanwhile, the Super Kings will be looking to defend their title and become the firs team to win it four times. On the other hand, the Royal Challengers will be eyeing their first-ever IPL title.