Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma make the cut, no Abhishek:Sameer Rizvi, Ravi Bishnoi standout performers; IPL’s best XI from week 1

IPL 2026 got underway with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) beating the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by six wickets on 28 March. And in just one week, fans have witnessed incredible last-over thrillers, 200-run totals being chased down with ease and some scintillating action. After a week of cricketing extravaganza, defending champions RCB sit pretty atop the IPL league standings with four points from two matches. Sameer Rizvi holds the Orange Cap with 160 runs in two matches, while Ravi Bishnoi holds the Purple Cap with five wickets to his name. To sum up the action in Week 1, we will look at the best batting performance, the best bowling performance, the best fielder of the week and pick the best XI players from this week, who were a cut above the rest. IPL 2026 report card of best players from week 1 Best batsman: Sameer Rizvi In the first match of the season, fans witnessed an epic knock of 80 runs from Ishan Kishan, while Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 69. Rohit Sharma was also amongst the runs, hitting 78. Rajasthan Royals’ prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi also scored a 15-ball half-century, but nobody came close to Sameer Rizvi. Delhi Capitals lost four early wickets against Lucknow Super Giants when Sameer came out to bat in their campaign opener. He ended up scoring an unbeaten 70 off 47 balls. He stitched a 119-run partnership with Tristan Stubbs to help Delhi prevail by 6 wickets. Rizvi stood tall once again when Delhi locked horns with the Mumbai Indians. Needing 163 runs to win, Sameer scored 90 runs in 51 balls. He missed a deserving hundred, but with back-to-back match-winning half-centuries, he takes the prize for the best batting performance from week 1. Best bowler: Ravi Bishnoi Ravi Bishnoi had a memorable outing against the Gujarat Titans, wherein he picked four wickets to take his tally to five wickets in the season. The spin wizard was signed by RR for big bucks, and he proved his worth to make a difference in a tight contest where his performance turned the tide in favour of the Royals. Best fielder: Phil Salt Phil Salt ensured that fans witnessed a catch of the season contender on the opening night itself as he ran to his right and dived to take a one-handed stunner to dismiss Ishan Kishan on 80. It was the second catch of the night, having earlier taken Travis Head’s catch, and he also played a part in sending Heinrich Klaasen back to the dugout. Also read: WATCH | Rohit Sharma tricks Kuldeep Yadav into taking DRS: Jasprit Bumrah’s bullet throw; Ashok Sharma’s 154 kmph scorcher IPL 2026 Best XI of Week 1 RCB and CSK at opposite ends of IPL 2026 points table RCB and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) find themselves at opposite ends of the IPL 2026 points table. With two wins in two matches, RCB sit pretty at the top with a superb Net Run Rate of 2.501, the best among all teams so far. Apart from RCB, the Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals and the Punjab Kings are the other teams to have won both their games so far. CSK on the other hand, find themselves rooted to the bottom spot after losing all three of their matches. Three-time winners Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) also have had a woeful campaign so far, losing both their matches alongside 2022 winners Gujarat Titans. The Mumbai Indians, Lucknow Super Giants and Sunrisers Hyderabad have had one win each.