Wankhede: 76.6% Elect to Bowl, 54.8% Win Chasing
July 7, 2026 · CricketStudio · How to cite
1The Finding
76.6% of toss-winning captains elect to bowl at Wankhede across 124 IPL matches — yet chasing teams win only 54.8%, below the 57.6% achieved at Eden Gardens.
2What the Numbers Show
| Metric | Value | Sample / Context |
|---|---|---|
| Matches analysed | 124 | 15 seasons (2008–2025) |
| % captains electing to field | 76.6% | 95 of 124 toss winners |
| Chase win rate | 54.8% | 68 of 124 matches |
| Win rate — toss-elect-field | 54.7% | 52 of 95 |
| Win rate — toss-elect-bat | 44.8% | 13 of 29 |
| Eden Gardens (comparison) | 57.6% | Chase win rate, 67.7% elect-field, 99 matches |
3Why It's Surprising
Wankhede is IPL's most heavily bowl-first venue by captain preference (76.6%). But its actual chase win rate (54.8%) is unremarkable by major-venue standards — below Eden Gardens (57.6%), which captains bowl-first at a much lower rate (67.7%). The preference exceeds the data. Wankhede's chase-friendly reputation is partially earned — chasing teams do win more than they bat first — but captains over-index on it relative to what the numbers support.
4Scope and Limits
- Covers IPL 2008–2025 (Cricsheet corpus). IPL 2026 excluded.
- 124 matches over 15 seasons. No adjustment for dew, pitch preparation, or team quality.
- Comparison to Eden Gardens is for contextual framing only — different conditions and match-mix.
5Provenance
CricketStudio aggregation of Cricsheet IPL corpus (CC BY 3.0). 124 matches at Wankhede Stadium in docs/match/ipl-cs-*/. Computed 2026-07-07. Script: scripts/build-ipl-historical-trend-data.mjs.