IPL playerSouth Africa2018 to 2026
Lungi Ngidi
On scorecards: L Ngidi · Right-hand bat
Lungi Ngidi, a bowler, has played five IPL seasons for three franchises. Three titles came along the way.
The arrival
Lungi Ngidi arrived through the auction: Chennai Super Kings paid ₹50 lakh, the base price.
That first season brought 7 matches and 11 wickets at 6.00 an over, and ended with Chennai Super Kings as champions.
The peak
The best season was 2026, for Delhi Capitals: 13 wickets at 8.23 runs an over, while the league's bowlers went for 9.73, with best figures of 3 for 27.
Franchise by franchise
2018 to 2021, Chennai Super Kings. Bought at the 2018 auction for ₹50 lakh. 14 matches and 25 wickets; champions in 2018 and 2021.
2025, Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Bought at the 2025 auction for ₹1.0 cr. 2 matches and 4 wickets; champions in 2025.
2026, Delhi Capitals. Bought at the 2026 auction for ₹2.0 cr. 12 matches and 13 wickets.
3 spells with three franchises in all. The longest was with Chennai Super Kings, 2018 to 2021. 2019, 2022, 2023 and 2024 are missing from the record: seasons without an IPL appearance.
How the wickets came
With the ball, 42 wickets in 622 deliveries, at 8.38 runs an over against a league rate of 8.94 for the same seasons: 0.55 an over cheaper than the typical bowler of the time, the mark of a bowler who kept things tight. There was one four-wicket haul, and the best figures were 4 for 10.
38.4% of the balls Lungi Ngidi bowled were dots, a higher share than 71% of the 150 bowlers with 500 balls or more; a wicket came every 14.8 balls.
The fielding record: 1 catch and 1 run-out.
At the auction
Lungi Ngidi has gone under the hammer four times. The highest price was ₹2.0 cr, paid by Delhi Capitals in 2026. The price climbed with the reputation: ₹50 lakh in 2018, ₹2.0 cr by 2026. Being bought did not always mean playing: no match followed for Delhi Capitals in 2022.
Seasons without an auction entry were played under a retention, a trade or a signing made outside the auction.
Where it stands
Lungi Ngidi has made 28 IPL appearances, the latest for Delhi Capitals in 2026, and has won 1 player-of-the-match award.
Season by season
| Season | Team | M | Runs | HS | Avg | SR | 50/100 | Wkts | Econ | Best | Ct | POTM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Chennai Super Kings | 7 | 0 | – | – | – | 0/0 | 11 | 6.00 | 4/10 | 0 | 1 | Champions |
| 2020 | Chennai Super Kings | 4 | 0 | – | – | – | 0/0 | 9 | 10.22 | 3/38 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | Chennai Super Kings | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | 0/0 | 5 | 10.42 | 3/28 | 1 | Champions | |
| 2025 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 2 | 0 | 0* | – | – | 0/0 | 4 | 10.13 | 3/30 | 0 | Champions | |
| 2026 | Delhi Capitals | 12 | 4 | 3 | 2.0 | 57.1 | 0/0 | 13 | 8.23 | 3/27 | 0 |
Franchise journey
- Chennai Super Kings: 2018 to 2021
- Royal Challengers Bengaluru: 2025
- Delhi Capitals: 2026
Ball-by-ball detail
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Dot balls faced | 55.6% |
| Balls per four | 9 |
| Balls per six | 9 |
| Dot balls bowled | 38.4% |
| Balls per wicket | 14.8 |
| Catches | 1 |
| Run-outs | 1 |
| Stumpings | 0 |
At the auction
| Auction | Set | Base price | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | FA4 | ₹50 lakh | Sold to Chennai Super Kings for ₹50 lakh |
| 2022 | – | ₹50 lakh | Sold to Delhi Capitals for ₹50 lakh |
| 2025 | ACC | ₹30 lakh | Sold to Royal Challengers Bengaluru for ₹1.0 cr |
| 2026 | ACC | ₹2.0 cr | Sold to Delhi Capitals for ₹2.0 cr |
Sources
- CricArcade IPL season statistics
- CricArcade IPL auction archive
- Kaggle IPL Complete Match Dataset 2008-2026, ball-by-ball, cross-checked against Cricsheet